CVE-2026-15190: SQL Injection in SourceCodester Shopping Cart Script 1.0 – Remote Authentication Bypass

Technical summary

CVE-2026-15190 involves improper input validation in the login authentication mechanism of the shopping cart script. The Username parameter fails to sanitize user-supplied input before incorporating it into SQL queries, allowing an attacker to break out of the intended query context and execute arbitrary SQL. The vulnerability chain involves CWE-74 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements) and CWE-89 (SQL Injection), indicating both the root cause (insufficient input filtering) and the direct attack vector (SQL command injection). With a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.3 and a network attack vector requiring no privileges or user interaction, this represents a classic remote SQL injection against an authentication boundary.

Business impact

An attacker exploiting this vulnerability can bypass login authentication entirely, gaining unauthorized administrative or user-level access to the shopping cart application. This enables theft of customer payment information, modification of product prices and inventory, creation of fraudulent orders, and exfiltration of user credentials and personal data. For merchants running this script, the reputational and financial damage from a data breach—combined with potential regulatory penalties under GDPR, PCI-DSS, or similar frameworks—can be severe. The availability of public exploit code significantly increases the likelihood of opportunistic attacks against unpatched instances.

Affected systems

SourceCodester Simple and Nice Shopping Cart Script version 1.0 is vulnerable. Organizations still running this specific version in production environments, particularly small merchants or legacy deployments, are at direct risk. The script's age and the nature of the vulnerability suggest it may be used in older e-commerce setups or development environments that have not been updated. Any internet-facing instance of version 1.0 is exploitable without authentication.

Exploitability

Exploitability is very high. The attack requires only network access and can be launched by an unauthenticated attacker with no special privileges. The Username parameter is part of the login workflow, making it immediately accessible to any visitor. No user interaction is needed—an automated tool or script can inject SQL payloads directly. The availability of public exploit code means attackers do not need sophisticated reverse-engineering skills. CVSS vector AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N reflects this ease of exploitation.

Remediation

The primary remediation is to upgrade SourceCodester Simple and Nice Shopping Cart Script to a patched version released after July 2026. Verify the vendor's security advisory for specific patched version numbers. If an upgrade is unavailable or not feasible in the short term, implement input validation and parameterized queries (prepared statements) in the /login.php file to prevent SQL injection. Apply a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule set to block SQL injection patterns in the Username parameter. Conduct a full security audit of the application for similar injection vulnerabilities in other input fields.

Patch guidance

Check the SourceCodester vendor website or repository for an official patch released after the vulnerability publication date (July 9, 2026). Verify the patch version number and release notes in the vendor's advisory before deploying. Test the patched version in a staging environment to ensure compatibility with existing data and configurations. After validation, apply the patch to all production instances without delay. If the vendor has not yet released a patch, prioritize mitigation measures such as WAF rules and input validation.

Detection guidance

Monitor for SQL injection attempts in access logs targeting /login.php, especially in the Username parameter. Look for encoded or escaped SQL keywords (e.g., UNION, SELECT, OR 1=1) in login requests. Intrusion detection signatures should flag suspicious patterns such as double dashes (--), semicolons, or quotation marks in authentication parameters. Database query logs may reveal unexpected queries or error messages from malformed SQL injection attempts. Implement rate limiting on the login endpoint to slow brute-force and injection attacks. Consider enabling detailed logging of all database queries for forensic analysis.

Why prioritize this

This vulnerability merits immediate remediation priority due to its HIGH CVSS score (7.3), unauthenticated remote exploitability, and public availability of working exploits. It directly threatens the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of customer data and system integrity. Any organization running version 1.0 in production should treat this as a critical security incident requiring urgent patching or containment.

Risk score, explained

The CVSS v3.1 score of 7.3 reflects a HIGH-severity vulnerability with significant real-world impact. The network attack vector (AV:N) and low attack complexity (AC:L) mean any internet user can launch an attack with simple tools. The absence of authentication requirements (PR:N) and user interaction (UI:N) eliminates common friction points. The impact assessment—low confidentiality (C:L), low integrity (I:L), and low availability (A:L)—is conservative; in practice, a successful SQL injection against a login endpoint typically yields full database access, making the real impact substantially higher. The score appropriately prioritizes this vulnerability above routine issues but reflects standard CVSS assumptions rather than worst-case scenarios.

Frequently asked questions