CVE-2026-14622: Authentication Bypass in jairiidriss Restaurant Website PHP-MySQL

Technical summary

The vulnerability stems from missing or inadequate authentication validation (CWE-287: Improper Authentication; CWE-306: Missing Authentication for Critical Function) in an AJAX endpoint. An attacker can bypass authentication mechanisms by directly invoking /admin/ajax_files without proper credentials, gaining the ability to execute administrative operations remotely. The HTTP-accessible endpoint processes requests without enforcing session validation or token verification. CVSS 3.1 score of 7.3 (HIGH) reflects the network-based attack vector (AV:N), low complexity (AC:L), no privilege requirements (PR:N), and no user interaction (UI:N), combined with impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Business impact

Unauthorized access to restaurant administrative functions can disrupt operations, compromise customer data, manipulate orders or pricing, and enable fraud. The ability to modify admin-level functionality without authentication exposes sensitive business logic, inventory systems, and potentially payment or customer information. In a multi-tenant or shared-hosting scenario, a single compromised instance could affect multiple restaurants using this codebase. Reputational damage and compliance violations (PCI DSS, GDPR) are likely if customer or transaction data is involved.

Affected systems

Any deployment of jairiidriss restaurant-website-php-mysql using a commit at or before 521428b5b612449df0cf4a5d15ee40cba67f3d35 is affected. Because the project follows a rolling release model without discrete version tags, patch status cannot be determined by version number alone. Organizations must audit their specific commit hash and review the project's repository for remediation commits post-vulnerability disclosure (after 2026-07-04).

Exploitability

Exploitability is HIGH. The vulnerability requires no authentication, no special privileges, and no user interaction—only network access to the affected AJAX endpoint. Attack complexity is low; manipulation of requests is straightforward. Public exploit code availability further lowers the barrier for opportunistic attackers. Automated scanning and exploitation of multiple instances is feasible.

Remediation

Immediate action: Disable or restrict network access to /admin/ajax_files via firewall or web server rules pending a permanent fix. Apply mandatory authentication checks to all AJAX endpoints, verifying session tokens or API keys before processing requests. Implement role-based access control (RBAC) to ensure only administrators can invoke administrative functions. The project maintainers should be contacted urgently; given the public exploit and no current response, consider forking or patching locally if your organization depends on this software. Verify the latest upstream commits for security fixes.

Patch guidance

No official patch version has been released by the jairiidriss project maintainers as of the vulnerability publication date. Organizations must monitor the project repository for security commits addressing CWE-287 and CWE-306. Check for any recent commits after 2026-07-04 that add authentication to /admin/ajax_files. If using this in production, apply temporary mitigations (firewall rules, IP allowlisting) immediately and prepare for a manual patch or code review to add proper authentication. Verify your current deployment commit hash against the affected commit boundary (up to 521428b5b612449df0cf4a5d15ee40cba67f3d35).

Detection guidance

Monitor access logs for requests to /admin/ajax_files from unauthenticated sessions or sources lacking valid authentication tokens. Look for repeated or unusual AJAX calls with POST or GET parameters typical of admin operations (e.g., create, update, delete). Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to block unauthenticated requests to /admin/* endpoints. Use SIEM queries to detect anomalous data exfiltration or state changes originating from the AJAX endpoint. Network segmentation to restrict admin interface access to trusted IP ranges or VPN is recommended.

Why prioritize this

Priority CRITICAL. High CVSS (7.3), public exploit availability, no authentication barrier, and rolling-release status creating ambiguous patch timelines warrant immediate investigation. The ability to remotely manipulate administrative functions without credentials poses direct risk to confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Organizations running this software should treat this as a showstopper until remediated or isolated.

Risk score, explained

CVSS 3.1 score of 7.3 reflects maximum attack accessibility (network, low complexity, no privileges, no user interaction) combined with partial impact across confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The lack of KEV CISA listing does not reduce risk; rather, the public exploit and unresponsive maintainer increase operational risk. This is a classic, easily exploitable authentication bypass—a high-confidence, immediately actionable threat.

Frequently asked questions