CVE-2025-5698

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-5698 is a critical SQL injection vulnerability discovered in the Brilliance Golden Link Secondary System, affecting versions up to 20250424. The flaw resides in the /sysframework/logSelect.htm endpoint, where the nodename argument is not properly sanitized before being used in SQL queries. This allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to inject arbitrary SQL commands, potentially leading to full database compromise, data exfiltration, and lateral movement within the network. The exploit has been publicly disclosed, increasing the risk of widespread exploitation. No official patch is available from the vendor.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability is not related to any open-source package manager (NPM, PyPI, Go, Ruby). It affects a proprietary enterprise application (Brilliance Golden Link Secondary System). Organizations using this software should treat it as a critical supply chain risk and consider immediate isolation or decommissioning until a vendor fix is provided.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

CVSS Score: 10.0 (Critical) Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

• Attack Vector (AV): Network – The vulnerability can be exploited remotely over the network.
• Attack Complexity (AC): Low – No special conditions or complex steps are required.
• Privileges Required (PR): None – No authentication is needed.
• User Interaction (UI): None – The victim does not need to perform any action.
• Scope (S): Unchanged – The exploit cannot affect resources beyond the vulnerable component.
• Confidentiality (C): High – Full database read access is possible.
• Integrity (I): High – Data can be modified or deleted.
• Availability (A): High – Database can be disrupted or destroyed.

Threat Level: Critical. Public exploit availability and lack of patch make this a high-priority target for threat actors.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability is a classic SQL injection in the nodename parameter of the /sysframework/logSelect.htm page. The application likely constructs a SQL query by directly concatenating user input without proper sanitization or parameterized queries.

Example vulnerable code (pseudocode):

SELECT * FROM logs WHERE nodename = '" + request.getParameter("nodename") + "'

An attacker can inject SQL metacharacters (e.g., single quote ') to break out of the intended string context and execute arbitrary SQL commands.

Exploitation flow:

1. Attacker sends a crafted HTTP GET request to /sysframework/logSelect.htm?nodename=' OR '1'='1.
2. The resulting SQL query becomes: SELECT * FROM logs WHERE nodename = '' OR '1'='1'.
3. This returns all rows from the logs table, bypassing any intended filtering.
4. More advanced payloads can be used for UNION-based data extraction, error-based injection, or time-based blind injection to enumerate the database schema and extract sensitive data.

Potential impact:

• Full read/write access to the database.
• Extraction of user credentials, session tokens, and business data.
• Potential for OS command execution if the database server has extended privileges (e.g., xp_cmdshell in SQL Server).
• Lateral movement to other systems if database credentials are reused.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Vulnerable code (conceptual):

String nodename = request.getParameter("nodename");
String query = "SELECT * FROM logs WHERE nodename = '" + nodename + "'";
Statement stmt = connection.createStatement();
ResultSet rs = stmt.executeQuery(query);

Patched code (conceptual):

String nodename = request.getParameter("nodename");
String query = "SELECT * FROM logs WHERE nodename = ?";
PreparedStatement pstmt = connection.prepareStatement(query);
pstmt.setString(1, nodename);
ResultSet rs = pstmt.executeQuery();

The patched version uses a parameterized query (PreparedStatement), which ensures user input is treated as data, not executable code. No official patch has been released by Brilliance, so this is a recommended fix for developers.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team (Offensive)

Lab Setup:

• Target: A vulnerable instance of Brilliance Golden Link Secondary System (version <= 20250424).
• Attacker: Kali Linux with Burp Suite or sqlmap.

Manual Exploitation:

1. Intercept a request to /sysframework/logSelect.htm with Burp Suite.
2. Modify the nodename parameter to include a SQL injection payload:

   GET /sysframework/logSelect.htm?nodename=test' OR '1'='1
   

3. Observe the response for unexpected data or errors.

Automated Exploitation with sqlmap:

sqlmap -u "http://target.com/sysframework/logSelect.htm?nodename=test" --batch --dbs

Example payload for data extraction:

GET /sysframework/logSelect.htm?nodename=test' UNION SELECT 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10--

Blue Team (Defensive)

Detection:

• Monitor web server logs for unusual SQL characters in the nodename parameter (e.g., ', --, UNION, SELECT).
• Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with rules to block SQL injection patterns.
• Use the Sigma and Suricata rules provided in the Detection Engineering section.

Mitigation:

• Immediately isolate the affected system if possible.
• Apply input validation and parameterized queries as a code fix.
• Restrict network access to the /sysframework/logSelect.htm endpoint to trusted IPs only.
• Monitor for signs of data exfiltration or unauthorized database access.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

Network IOCs:

• HTTP requests to /sysframework/logSelect.htm containing SQL keywords or special characters.
• Unusual response sizes or error messages containing SQL syntax.

File IOCs:

• Log entries in web server logs showing SQL injection attempts.
• Database audit logs showing unexpected queries or large data exports.

Example log entry:

192.168.1.100 - - [25/Apr/2025:10:15:30 +0000] "GET /sysframework/logSelect.htm?nodename=test' OR '1'='1 HTTP/1.1" 200 5432

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_5698_SQLi_Detection {
    meta:
        description = "Detects SQL injection attempts targeting CVE-2025-5698 in Golden Link Secondary System"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-25"
        reference = "CVE-2025-5698"
    strings:
        $sqli1 = "nodename="
        $sqli2 = "' OR '"
        $sqli3 = "UNION SELECT"
        $sqli4 = "1=1"
        $sqli5 = "1=2"
    condition:
        any of ($sqli*) and #sqli1 > 0
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2025-5698 SQL Injection Attempt
id: 8a9b3c4d-5e6f-7a8b-9c0d-1e2f3a4b5c6d
status: experimental
description: Detects SQL injection attempts against the /sysframework/logSelect.htm endpoint
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-25
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
detection:
    selection:
        cs-uri-query|contains:
            - "nodename="
            - "' OR '"
            - "UNION SELECT"
            - "1=1"
            - "1=2"
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of special characters in nodename (unlikely)
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-5698 SQL Injection Attempt"; flow:to_server,established; content:"/sysframework/logSelect.htm"; http_uri; content:"nodename="; http_uri; pcre:"/(\x27|%27).*OR.*(\x27|%27)/i"; classtype:web-application-attack; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Isolate the affected system from the network if possible.
2. Apply virtual patching using a WAF to block SQL injection patterns.
3. Restrict access to the /sysframework/logSelect.htm endpoint to only trusted IP addresses.

Long-term Fix:

• Code fix: Implement parameterized queries (prepared statements) for all database interactions.
• Input validation: Whitelist allowed characters for the nodename parameter.
• Vendor contact: Pressure Brilliance to release an official security patch.

Compensating Controls:

• Enable detailed logging and monitoring for the web application.
• Conduct a full security audit of the application for similar vulnerabilities.
• Consider replacing the Golden Link Secondary System with a more secure alternative if no patch is forthcoming.

Valters IT