# CVE-2013-3238: Code injection in n/a

> Authenticated users can execute arbitrary code in phpMyAdmin via a crafted input in the table prefix replacement feature.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.0 (`AV:N/AC:M/Au:S/C:P/I:P/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 26 Apr 2013
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-6cqw-hv35-68q6

## What is CVE-2013-3238?

CVE-2013-3238 is a medium-severity code injection vulnerability in Phpmyadmin Phpmyadmin, published on 26 Apr 2013. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

phpMyAdmin 3.5.x before 3.5.8 and 4.x before 4.0.0-rc3 allows remote authenticated users to execute arbitrary code via a /e\x00 sequence, which is not properly handled before making a preg_replace function call within the "Replace table prefix" feature.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2013-3238?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Phpmyadmin Phpmyadmin.

## How do I fix CVE-2013-3238?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2013-3238 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2013-3238 exists.

Public exploit code:

- phpMyAdmin 3.5.8/4.0.0-RC2 - Multiple Vulnerabilities (exploitdb)
- phpMyAdmin Authenticated Remote Code Execution via preg_replace() (metasploit)
- phpMyAdmin - 'preg_replace' (Authenticated) Remote Code Execution (Metasploit) (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in Phpmyadmin Phpmyadmin

- [CVE-2008-7251](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-7251/): Misconfiguration in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2008-7252](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-7252/): phpMyAdmin unsafely handles temporary files (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2007-0203](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2007-0203/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2004-1147](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2004-1147/): Command injection in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2020-22452](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-22452/): phpmyadmin contains SQL Injection vulnerability (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2013-3238 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2013-3238 is a medium-severity code injection vulnerability in Phpmyadmin Phpmyadmin, published on 26 Apr 2013. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2013-3238 exists.

Affected product: Phpmyadmin Phpmyadmin. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-3238/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-3238/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2013-3238
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2013-3238
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2013-3238

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-3238/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.