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MoodleCMS

CVE-2012-3394

MEDIUM · 5.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-07-23
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
59/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
auth/ldap/ntlmsso_attempt.php in Moodle 2.0.x before 2.0.10, 2.1.x before 2.1.7, 2.2.x before 2.2.4, and 2.3.x before 2.3.1 redirects users from an https LDAP login URL to an http URL, which allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive information by sniffing the network.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

The NTLM SSO authentication module in Moodle contains a flaw where the file auth/ldap/ntlmsso_attempt.php redirects users from an HTTPS LDAP login URL to an insecure HTTP URL. This downgrade attack exposes authentication credentials and session tokens to network sniffing, allowing remote attackers to intercept sensitive authentication data.

MitigationUpgrade to Moodle 2.0.10+, 2.1.7+, 2.2.4+, or 2.3.1+ to patch the insecure redirect. Alternatively, ensure LDAP/NTLM SSO authentication flows remain on HTTPS and consider disabling NTLM SSO if not required.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
MoodleCMS
Affected:= 2.1.0= 2.1.1= 2.1.2= 2.1.3= 2.1.4= 2.1.5= 2.1.6= 2.2.0= 2.2.1= 2.2.2= 2.2.3= 2.3.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Partial
Integrity
None
Availability
None

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check installed Moodle version
    Locate the version.php file in your Moodle installation root directory and read the $release or $version variable. Alternatively, access the Moodle admin interface and navigate to Site administration > Server > Environment or check the footer of any Moodle page for the version number.
    Affected if The installed version matches 2.1.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.2, 2.1.3, 2.1.4, 2.1.5, 2.1.6, 2.2.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.2, 2.2.3, or 2.3.0.
  2. Verify NTLM SSO authentication is enabled
    Access Site administration > Plugins > Authentication > Manage authentication. Check if NTLM SSO is listed and enabled. Alternatively, examine the auth/ldap/config.html file or the config table in the Moodle database for auth_ldap_ntlmsso_enabled setting.
    Affected if NTLM SSO authentication plugin is enabled in Moodle.
  3. Locate vulnerable NTLM SSO script
    Check for the existence of auth/ldap/ntlmsso_attempt.php in your Moodle installation directory. View the file contents and look for redirect logic that changes HTTPS to HTTP.
    Affected if The file auth/ldap/ntlmsso_attempt.php exists and contains code that redirects from HTTPS to HTTP URLs.
  4. Inspect LDAP authentication configuration
    Navigate to Site administration > Plugins > Authentication > LDAP server. Review the LDAP settings page for NTLM SSO configuration parameters, particularly any URL settings that may reference HTTP instead of HTTPS.
    Affected if The LDAP/NTLM SSO configuration contains URLs using HTTP protocol or allows automatic redirection to insecure URLs.

You are affected if your Moodle installation runs version 2.1.0-2.1.6, 2.2.0-2.2.3, or 2.3.0 AND the NTLM SSO authentication module is enabled, as the insecure redirect vulnerability in the NTLM SSO module exposes credentials to network interception.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade to Moodle 2.0.10+, 2.1.7+, 2.2.4+, or 2.3.1+ to patch the insecure redirect. Alternatively, ensure LDAP/NTLM SSO authentication flows remain on HTTPS and consider disabling NTLM SSO if not required.

Fix this in Moodle Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,720
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2012-3394 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data