CVE-2024-44657 identifies a SQL Injection vulnerability in PHPGurukul Complaint Management System version 2.0, specifically in the between-date-userreport.php file. The vulnerability arises from improper sanitization of the fromdate and todate parameters, which are used to filter reports by date. An attacker can craft malicious input to manipulate the underlying SQL query, potentially extracting or altering data from the database. The vulnerability does not require authentication or user interaction, increasing its risk profile. The CVSS 3.1 score of 6.5 reflects a medium severity, with network attack vector, low attack complexity, no privileges required, and no user interaction needed. The impact primarily affects confidentiality and integrity, as attackers could access sensitive complaint data or modify records, but availability remains unaffected. No patches or known exploits are currently documented, indicating a window for proactive mitigation. The CWE-89 classification confirms this is a classic SQL Injection issue, emphasizing the need for secure coding practices such as prepared statements and input validation.

For European organizations, the exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized disclosure of sensitive complaint data, potentially violating data protection regulations such as GDPR. Integrity impacts could allow attackers to alter complaint records, undermining trust in complaint management processes and possibly affecting legal or regulatory compliance. Although availability is not impacted, the reputational damage and potential regulatory fines could be significant. Organizations relying on PHPGurukul Complaint Management System 2.0, especially those handling personal or sensitive data, face increased risk. The lack of authentication requirement means attackers can exploit this remotely without credentials, increasing the threat surface. This vulnerability could be leveraged in targeted attacks against sectors with high complaint volumes, such as public services, healthcare, or consumer protection agencies in Europe.

Immediate mitigation should focus on implementing input validation and sanitization for the fromdate and todate parameters to prevent injection of malicious SQL code. Developers should refactor the affected code to use parameterized queries or prepared statements to eliminate direct concatenation of user input into SQL commands. Organizations should conduct code reviews and security testing on all user input handling in the complaint management system. Network-level protections such as web application firewalls (WAFs) can be configured to detect and block SQL Injection attempts targeting these parameters. Monitoring database logs for unusual queries or access patterns can help detect exploitation attempts. Since no official patches are currently available, organizations should consider isolating the affected system or restricting access to trusted IPs until a fix is released. Regular backups and incident response plans should be updated to address potential data integrity issues arising from exploitation.