Parse Dashboard is a management interface for Parse Server applications. Versions 7.3.0-alpha.42 through 9.0.0-alpha.7 contain a CSRF vulnerability in the AI Agent API endpoint (`POST /apps/:appId/agent`). This endpoint did not implement CSRF protection mechanisms, such as validating CSRF tokens, allowing attackers to trick authenticated users into submitting forged requests. When an authenticated user visits a malicious webpage, the attacker can leverage the victim's active session to send unauthorized commands to the agent endpoint, potentially manipulating backend AI agent configurations or operations. The vulnerability stems from the absence of CSRF middleware and token validation in the affected versions. The fix introduced in version 9.0.0-alpha.8 adds CSRF middleware to the endpoint and embeds CSRF tokens in the dashboard UI, preventing unauthorized cross-site requests. As a temporary mitigation, removing the `agent` configuration block disables the vulnerable endpoint entirely. The vulnerability has a CVSS 4.0 base score of 8.3, reflecting its high impact on integrity and ease of exploitation without requiring privileges or authentication beyond user interaction. No public exploits have been reported yet, but the vulnerability poses a significant risk to organizations using affected parse-dashboard versions with the agent feature enabled.

The primary impact of this vulnerability is unauthorized modification of the AI Agent API endpoint via forged requests, which can compromise the integrity of the Parse Server applications managed through the dashboard. Attackers can perform actions on behalf of authenticated users without their consent, potentially altering AI agent behavior or configurations. This could lead to data manipulation, disruption of AI-driven functionalities, or unauthorized command execution within the Parse Server environment. Since the vulnerability requires user interaction (visiting a malicious page) but no additional privileges, it can be exploited relatively easily in targeted phishing or social engineering attacks. Organizations relying on parse-dashboard for managing critical backend services may face operational disruptions, loss of trust, or compliance issues if exploited. Although no known exploits are currently active in the wild, the high CVSS score and ease of exploitation make this a significant threat that demands prompt remediation.

1. Upgrade parse-dashboard to version 9.0.0-alpha.8 or later, which includes the CSRF protection fix for the AI Agent API endpoint. 2. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, remove the `agent` configuration block from the dashboard configuration file to disable the vulnerable endpoint entirely, eliminating the attack surface. 3. Educate users of the dashboard to avoid visiting untrusted or suspicious websites while authenticated to the dashboard to reduce the risk of CSRF exploitation. 4. Implement Content Security Policy (CSP) headers and SameSite cookie attributes to further mitigate CSRF risks by restricting cross-origin requests and cookie transmission. 5. Monitor dashboard access logs for unusual POST requests to the `/apps/:appId/agent` endpoint that could indicate attempted exploitation. 6. Conduct regular security assessments and penetration testing focused on web application vulnerabilities, including CSRF, to proactively identify and remediate similar issues. 7. Consider implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) for dashboard access to reduce the risk of session hijacking and unauthorized access.