CVE-2025-27135

Remediation/Mitigation Strategy for CVE-2025-27135 - RAGFlow SQL Injection Vulnerability

This document outlines a remediation and mitigation strategy for CVE-2025-27135, a SQL injection vulnerability affecting RAGFlow versions 0.15.1 and prior.

1. Vulnerability Description:

  • CVE ID: CVE-2025-27135
  • Affected Software: RAGFlow (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) engine, versions 0.15.1 and prior.
  • Vulnerability Type: SQL Injection
  • Description: The ExeSQL component in RAGFlow directly extracts the SQL statement from user input and executes it against the database. This allows an attacker to inject malicious SQL code into the input, potentially leading to unauthorized data access, modification, or deletion.

2. Severity:

  • CVSS Score: 8.9 (High)
  • CVSS Vector: Based on the provided information, a specific CVSS vector isn’t available. However, given the description, a likely vector could be: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (Network, Low Attack Complexity, No Privileges Required, No User Interaction, Unchanged Scope, High Confidentiality Impact, High Integrity Impact, High Availability Impact)
  • Severity Justification: The ability to inject arbitrary SQL commands grants an attacker significant control over the database. This can lead to:
    • Data Breach: Sensitive information can be stolen.
    • Data Manipulation: Data can be modified or deleted.
    • Service Disruption: The database can be corrupted, leading to application downtime.
    • Privilege Escalation: Attackers might be able to use SQL injection to gain access to higher-level accounts or system resources, depending on the database configuration and permissions.

3. Known Exploits:

  • Based on the provided data: As of the date of publication, no patched version is available. This means the vulnerability is actively exploitable in vulnerable versions.
  • Exploit Scenario: An attacker could craft a malicious input containing SQL code designed to bypass application logic and interact directly with the database. For example, if the application uses the ExeSQL component to search for documents based on keywords, an attacker might inject SQL code that allows them to view all documents or execute arbitrary database commands.

4. Remediation/Mitigation Strategy:

Since a patch is not yet available, the following mitigation strategies should be implemented immediately:

  • Short-Term Mitigation (Immediate Actions):
    • Input Validation and Sanitization: Critical! Implement strict input validation and sanitization for any data that is passed to the ExeSQL component or used in the construction of SQL queries. This should include:
      • Whitelisting: Only allow known good characters or patterns in user input.
      • Escaping: Properly escape special characters that could be interpreted as SQL commands (e.g., single quotes, double quotes, semicolons). The specific escaping method should be appropriate for the database being used.
      • Blacklisting (Less Recommended): While less effective than whitelisting, blacklisting can be used to block common SQL injection keywords and patterns (e.g., UNION, SELECT, DELETE, --, /*, */). However, blacklisting can be easily bypassed.
    • Least Privilege Principle: Ensure that the database user account used by RAGFlow has the minimum necessary privileges. Restrict access to sensitive tables and operations. For example, the application should only be granted SELECT access to tables it needs to read from, and INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE access only when absolutely necessary.
    • Web Application Firewall (WAF): Deploy a web application firewall (WAF) to detect and block SQL injection attempts. Configure the WAF to use a ruleset that is specifically designed to protect against SQL injection attacks.
    • Monitor and Alert: Implement robust monitoring and alerting to detect suspicious activity, such as unusual database queries or error messages that could indicate a SQL injection attempt. Analyze application logs and database audit logs regularly.
    • Network Segmentation: Isolate the RAGFlow application and database server from other systems on the network. This can help to limit the impact of a successful attack.
    • Disable ExeSQL Component (If Possible): If feasible and without compromising essential application functionality, consider temporarily disabling or removing the vulnerable ExeSQL component until a patch is available. Explore alternative methods for database interaction that do not rely on directly executing user-provided SQL.
  • Long-Term Remediation (Required):

    • Upgrade to a Patched Version: Highest Priority! As soon as a patched version of RAGFlow is released, upgrade to the latest version immediately. Monitor the RAGFlow project’s security advisories for updates and release information.

    • Code Review: Once the patched version is installed or mitigation are implemented, perform a thorough code review of the ExeSQL component and any other code that interacts with the database. Identify and correct any other potential vulnerabilities.

    • Prepared Statements (Parameterized Queries): Replace direct SQL query construction with prepared statements (also known as parameterized queries). Prepared statements separate the SQL code from the data, preventing SQL injection attacks. This is the most effective way to prevent SQL injection vulnerabilities. Example (pseudo-code):

          // Vulnerable:

      // string sql = “SELECT * FROM users WHERE username = ‘” + username + “’”; // executeSql(sql);

      // Secure (using prepared statements/parameterized queries): string sql = “SELECT * FROM users WHERE username = ?”; PreparedStatement pstmt = connection.prepareStatement(sql); pstmt.setString(1, username); ResultSet rs = pstmt.executeQuery();

    • Implement Data Access Layer (DAL): Create a well-defined data access layer that abstracts away the details of database interaction. This can make it easier to use prepared statements and enforce security policies.

    • Regular Security Audits: Conduct regular security audits of the RAGFlow application and its underlying infrastructure to identify and address potential vulnerabilities. Include penetration testing to simulate real-world attacks.

5. Communication:

  • Inform users of the vulnerability and the steps they need to take to protect themselves.
  • Maintain open communication with the RAGFlow development team to report the vulnerability and track the progress of the patch.
  • Document all mitigation steps taken and any incidents related to this vulnerability.

6. Responsibility:

  • The IT security team is responsible for implementing and maintaining the mitigation strategy.
  • The development team is responsible for developing and deploying the patched version of RAGFlow.

By following this remediation and mitigation strategy, organizations can significantly reduce the risk of SQL injection attacks against their RAGFlow applications. The most important step is to upgrade to a patched version as soon as it becomes available.

Assigner

Date

  • Published Date: 2025-02-25 18:16:59
  • Updated Date: 2025-02-25 19:15:16

More Details

CVE-2025-27135