CVE-2011-4293: Moodle Double-Caches Content, Potentially Writing to a File System's Tmp Directory
Summary
CVE-2011-4293: Moodle Double-Caches Content, Potentially Writing to a File System's Tmp Directory. Affects moodle/moodle across 2 version ranges.
>= 2.0, < 2.0.4
>= 2.1, < 2.1.1
Fixed in 2.0.4 or 2.1.1, depending on the release line you run. How to fix ↓
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Background
Moodle is an open-source learning management system (LMS) used by educational institutions worldwide. It provides a platform for creating and delivering online courses, managing student enrollment, and facilitating communication between teachers and students. Moodle is written in PHP and relies on a database backend for storing course content, user information, and system configuration. This vulnerability affects Moodle versions 2.0.x before 2.0.4 and 2.1.x before 2.1.1.
Vulnerability Detail
The theme implementation in Moodle triggers duplicate caching of Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and JavaScript content. This duplication allows remote attackers to bypass intended access restrictions and write to an operating-system temporary directory using unspecified vectors. By exploiting this vulnerability, an attacker could potentially gain unauthorized access to sensitive files or execute arbitrary code on the server. The impact of this vulnerability depends on the permissions and configuration of the affected Moodle installation.
How To Fix
Fixed versions by release line
The minimum fixed version depends on the release line you run.
-
>= 2.0, < 2.0.42.0.4composer require moodle/moodle:2.0.4 -
>= 2.1, < 2.1.12.1.1composer require moodle/moodle:2.1.1
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Workaround
If upgrading to a patched version is not immediately possible, administrators can implement a temporary workaround by disabling the caching of CSS and JavaScript content in the Moodle theme. This can be done by modifying the theme configuration settings or by applying a custom code modification. However, this workaround may impact the performance of the Moodle site and should only be used as a temporary measure until the upgrade can be performed.
Conclusion
The vulnerability in Moodle versions 2.0.x and 2.1.x allows remote attackers to bypass access restrictions and write to the file system's temporary directory. It is crucial for administrators to upgrade their Moodle installations to the recommended versions or apply the temporary workaround to mitigate the risk. For further support on vulnerability remediation, please contact DevNack.com.
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FAQ
Moodle is an open-source learning management system (LMS) used by educational institutions worldwide. It provides a platform for creating and delivering online courses, managing student enrollment, and facilitating communication between teachers and students.
This vulnerability affects Moodle versions 2.0.x before 2.0.4 and 2.1.x before 2.1.1.
By exploiting this vulnerability, an attacker could potentially gain unauthorized access to sensitive files or execute arbitrary code on the server. The impact depends on the permissions and configuration of the affected Moodle installation.
To fix this vulnerability, it is recommended to upgrade to Moodle version 2.0.4 or later for Moodle 2.0.x installations, and version 2.1.1 or later for Moodle 2.1.x installations. Administrators should follow the official Moodle documentation for upgrading their installations.
If upgrading to a patched version is not immediately possible, administrators can disable the caching of CSS and JavaScript content in the Moodle theme as a temporary workaround. However, this may impact the performance of the Moodle site and should only be used until the upgrade can be performed.
References
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