CVE-2025-40682 is a critical SQL injection flaw in Human Resource Management System, with a CVSS score of 9.8. INCIBE reported no solution at the time of writing. Treat any instance reachable from untrusted networks as exposed until you have confirmed the fix, and review your logs for unexpected requests.
What's affected
- Product: Human Resource Management System version 1.0, a PHP project for managing employee records.
- Fixed version: INCIBE reports no solution at this time.
- Severity: Critical, CVSS 9.8 (vector CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).
- Weakness: CWE-89.
- Published: 2025-07-29.
The injectable inputs are the city and state parameters in /controller/ccity.php. The record says an attacker could retrieve, create, update and delete data in the database.
INCIBE advisory INCIBE-2025-0409 covers five CVEs for this product. CVE-2025-40682 is the only high severity one. CVE-2025-40683 to CVE-2025-40686 are reflected cross-site scripting issues of medium severity.
How to check if you're exposed
This is source code you host yourself, so you can search for the file and parameter named in the record:
grep -rn '\$_GET\|\$_POST\|\$_REQUEST' --include=*.php . | grep -i 'query'
The command lists lines where request input and a database query appear together. Read each hit and look for values placed straight into the SQL text. It is a starting point for review, not proof of safety.
You can also run your dependency manifests and container images through the free in-browser scan to see which known CVEs affect the packages you ship. It will not find a flaw inside a vendor appliance or an unmanaged install, so keep an inventory of those too.
What to do now
- Identify every copy of Human Resource Management System you run, including test and forgotten ones.
- There is no reported fix, so the practical choice is to patch the code yourself, put the app behind authentication and a network allow list, or retire it.
- Until that is done, remove public access where you can. Put the application behind a VPN, a network allow list or a web application firewall rule, and watch the access and database logs for unusual requests to the endpoint named above.
- If you can edit the code, change the vulnerable query or check to a safe form and review nearby files for the same pattern.
- Record the outcome, including the date, the version you ended on and who confirmed it, so a later audit has something to read.
- Add the product to your continuous monitoring so a future CVE against it reaches you without a manual search.
Why it matters
SQL injection happens when an application builds a database query by gluing user input into the query text. The database cannot tell where the developer's command ends and the visitor's data begins, so a crafted value can change what the query does. The class is catalogued as CWE-89 (SQL injection).
The usual fix is a parameterized query, where the SQL text and the values travel separately. Input validation helps as a second layer, but it is not a substitute. Because this flaw needs no login and no click from a victim, anything that can reach the page over the network is in range.
The record's KEV flag is false, so CISA does not list it as known to be exploited, and nothing in the sources here says it is being exploited in the wild.
Quick check
What does the score of 9.8 mean for Human Resource Management System?
The vector CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H reads as network reachable, low complexity, no privileges and no user interaction. The impact ratings are confidentiality high, integrity high, availability high. Use it to rank the work, then confirm exposure for your own deployment.
Is escaping the parameter enough to fix this?
Escaping is fragile and easy to get wrong in one place out of many. Parameterized queries are the reliable fix because the value is never treated as SQL. If you maintain the code, change the query itself rather than patching the symptom.
Sources
Last reviewed: 18 October 2026.
