CVE Alert: CVE-2025-9928 – projectworlds – Travel Management System

Risk verdict

High risk with a public exploit for remote, unauthenticated SQL injection on a web-facing component; treat as urgent.

Why this matters

Attackers can read or manipulate database content, potentially exfiltrating or altering sensitive bookings and personal data. The vulnerability carries a high impact to confidentiality and integrity, and the exploit is publicly available, increasing likelihood of automated attempts targeting web apps.

Most likely attack path

An attacker can directly target the web endpoint /viewcategory.php by supplying crafted input in t1, taking advantage of SQL injection without authentication or user interaction. The CVSS signals indicate network access, no user interaction, and low preconditions, enabling rapid data access or modification within the database.

Who is most exposed

Publicly accessible deployments of the Travel Management System, especially those hosted on internet-facing web servers or multi-tenant hosting, are at risk. Organisations with default installations or delayed patches are particularly exposed.

Detection ideas

• Web/app logs showing requests to /viewcategory.php with suspicious t1 values containing SQL patterns.
• Recurrent SQL error messages or unusual responses from the application.
• IDS/IPS or WAF alerts for SQL injection signatures aligned to this endpoint.
• Unexpected increases in database query latency or abnormal data access patterns.

Mitigation and prioritisation

• Apply vendor patch or upgrade to a fixed version; verify through change records.
• If patching is not immediately possible, implement input handling: parameterised queries, prepared statements, and strict input validation on t1.
• Deploy or tune Web Application Firewall rules to block SQL injection attempts on this endpoint.
• Restrict exposure (e.g., disable or monitor /viewcategory.php access, enforce authentication where feasible) and enable enhanced logging.
• Patch management: schedule remediation; confirm backups and have an incident response plan ready. If KEV is flagged or EPSS ≥ 0.5, treat as priority 1; otherwise consider high with near-term remediation goals.