CVE-2020-37116
Gunet Open Eclass Platform 1.7.3
Raw vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:XSummary
CVE-2020-37116 is a high-severity Improper Access Control (CWE-284) vulnerability in Gunet Open Eclass Platform. Its CVSS base score is 8.7 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 34th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-3 (Access Enforcement) and SA-22 (Unsupported System Components) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2020-37116 is a vulnerability in GUnet OpenEclass 1.7.3, an e-learning platform that includes phpMyAdmin 2.10.0.2 by default. This bundled phpMyAdmin version permits remote logins, exposing the database management interface to unauthorized access. The issue stems from improper access control (CWE-284), with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).
Attackers require low privileges (PR:L) on the OpenEclass platform to exploit this remotely over the network. They can access phpMyAdmin directly, upload a shell, and inspect the config.php file to extract the MySQL password, resulting in full database compromise with high impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Advisories and documentation, including the VulnCheck advisory on GUnet OpenEclass phpMyAdmin remote access and the OpenEclass CHANGES.txt file, provide details on patches and mitigations. A public proof-of-concept exploit is available on Exploit-DB (exploit 48163).
Real-world exploitation is feasible given the public exploit, highlighting risks for unpatched OpenEclass 1.7.3 deployments.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2020-30979
Vulnerability Data
GUnet OpenEclass 1.7.3 includes phpMyAdmin 2.10.0.2 by default, which allows remote logins. Attackers with access to the platform can remotely access phpMyAdmin and, after uploading a shell, view the config.php file to obtain the MySQL password, leading to full database…
more
compromise.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI
Why these techniques?
Vulnerability exposes phpMyAdmin to low-privileged OpenEclass users, enabling exploitation for privilege escalation (T1068), web shell upload (T1505.003), extraction of MySQL credentials from config.php (T1552.001), and full database access/manipulation (T1213.006).
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Directly enforces access control policies to prevent low-privileged users from remotely accessing the vulnerable phpMyAdmin interface bundled in OpenEclass.
Mandates timely flaw remediation, including patching the remote login vulnerability in the default phpMyAdmin 2.10.0.2 as advised in OpenEclass documentation.
Prohibits use of unsupported system components like the outdated phpMyAdmin 2.10.0.2, preventing bundling of vulnerable software that enables remote access and exploitation.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
PR.AA-05 directly enforces policy-based access management and least privilege, eliminating most improper-access-control defects, yet CWE-284 also covers implementation flaws and design gaps outside a single management control.
Hardened baselines and deviation monitoring directly eliminate most configuration-induced access-control defects, yet CWE-284 also encompasses code-level and design flaws outside the scope of configuration management alone.
Secure SDLC practices catch most access-control defects during design/coding/testing (mostly), yet leave residual risk from runtime configuration, architecture, and operational controls (partial).
PR.AA-01 supplies managed identities/credentials that support but do not implement access-control decisions, so it only partially prevents CWE-284 in either direction.
Authentication directly blocks unauthenticated actors (partial prevention of CWE-284) but leaves authorization logic, policy enforcement, and role checks untouched, so the control neither eliminates nor fully mitigates the broader weakness.
PR.DS-01 encryption mitigates impact of failed access checks on stored data but neither implements nor constrains access-control logic itself.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Defining and enforcing explicit access rights and restrictions for each entity directly stops the assignment of permissions that exceed what is required, eliminating the root condition that allows improper access control.
Formal authorization, role-based provisioning, and timely revocation of access rights directly stop the creation of accounts or permissions that exceed what the business actually needs.
By enforcing explicit rules on which identities or groups may perform read, write, delete or execute operations and by denying anonymous access to sensitive data, the control directly stops the creation of overly permissive or missing access-control checks.
Requiring one-to-one mapping of identities to entities and timely removal of unused identities directly stops attackers from leveraging stale or shared accounts to bypass access restrictions.
By explicitly transferring security roles and responsibilities when personnel change jobs or leave, the control reduces the chance that former employees retain access rights they no longer need, thereby limiting improper access control.
Physical entry controls enforce explicit authorization and authentication at every access point, directly stopping unauthorized actors from reaching information-processing assets.