CVE-2022-24860 identifies a security vulnerability in the vran-dev project's Databasir platform, specifically version 1.0.1 and later. Databasir is a team-oriented relational database model document management platform designed to facilitate collaborative document handling. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-321, which pertains to the use of hard-coded cryptographic keys. In this case, the application embeds a cryptographic key directly within its source code or binaries rather than generating or securely managing keys dynamically. This hard-coded key can be reverse-engineered or extracted by an attacker with access to the application binaries or source code. Exploiting this vulnerability allows an attacker to generate valid login credentials for any user within the Databasir system. Consequently, the attacker can gain unauthorized access to the service's backend, which may be hosted across various IP addresses. This unauthorized access could lead to unauthorized data exposure, modification, or deletion, depending on the privileges of the compromised accounts. The vulnerability does not require user interaction or prior authentication to exploit, as the attacker only needs to obtain the hard-coded key to generate credentials. There are no known exploits in the wild at the time of reporting, and no official patches have been released yet. The medium severity rating reflects the significant risk posed by the vulnerability balanced against the current lack of active exploitation and the need for some technical skill to extract the key. However, the impact on confidentiality and integrity is substantial if exploited.

For European organizations using Databasir, this vulnerability presents a serious risk to the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive data managed within the platform. Unauthorized access to backend services could lead to data breaches, intellectual property theft, or sabotage of critical document management workflows. Given that Databasir is designed for team collaboration, compromised accounts could allow attackers to impersonate legitimate users, manipulate documents, or disrupt business operations. The availability impact is less direct but could occur if attackers modify or delete essential data or disrupt service functionality. Organizations in sectors with stringent data protection requirements, such as finance, healthcare, and government, face heightened regulatory and reputational risks if this vulnerability is exploited. The distributed nature of the backend services across different IP addresses increases the attack surface, potentially enabling attackers to target multiple organizational units or subsidiaries. The lack of known exploits currently provides a window for proactive mitigation, but the ease of exploitation once the key is extracted underscores the urgency for remediation.

To mitigate this vulnerability effectively, European organizations should first identify all instances of Databasir deployment within their environment. Since no official patches are available, immediate mitigation involves code review and replacement of the hard-coded cryptographic key with a secure key management solution. This includes generating unique cryptographic keys per deployment and storing them securely using hardware security modules (HSMs) or secure vault services. Organizations should enforce strict access controls and monitoring on the Databasir backend services, including network segmentation to limit exposure of backend IP addresses. Implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all user accounts can reduce the risk of unauthorized access even if credentials are compromised. Additionally, organizations should conduct regular audits of user activity logs to detect anomalous access patterns indicative of exploitation attempts. If possible, consider deploying application-layer encryption for sensitive documents to add an additional security layer independent of the platform’s authentication. Finally, organizations should engage with the vendor or open-source community to track the release of official patches and plan timely updates once available.