# CVE-2026-108972: SourceCodester Human Resource Management System authentication bypass in Employee Endpoint

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-108972-a-vulnerability-was-found-in-sourcecodester-human-resource  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-10-13. Updated: 2026-10-16  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-108972 · Severity: high · CVSS 7.3 · Published 2026-10-13

SourceCodester Human Resource Management System 1.0 is a web application for managing employee records. The Employee Endpoint fails to verify user authentication, allowing an unauthenticated attacker to create administrator accounts, hijack the built-in admin account, and upload malicious PHP files that execute on the server. This results in complete compromise of the system including data exposure, manipulation, and remote code execution.

Vendors: [SourceCodester](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/sourcecodester).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-108972 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-108972 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-108972?** High severity, with a CVSS score of 7.3, published 13 October 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** SourceCodester Human Resource Management System 1.0.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-108972?** No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.

**How is CVE-2026-108972 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a web application.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-108972?** Check whether you run SourceCodester Human Resource Management System at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## Technical details

The controller/employee.php file calls session_start() but never validates the presence of an authenticated session via isset($_SESSION['User']), allowing unauthenticated access to admin creation and account modification functions. Role and password parameters are accepted directly from POST/GET without validation, and role=1 is persisted in the database to create administrative privileges. Additionally, file upload validation relies only on the client-supplied Content-Type header, permitting PHP files to be uploaded with spoofed MIME types and executed server-side under the web root (CWE-862, CWE-434).

## Affected products

- SourceCodester Human Resource Management System 1.0

## Timeline

- 2026-09-25: disclosed: Disclosure attempted via SourceCodester contact form; blocked by anti-spam filter
- 2026-10-13: advisory: Public advisory published by TraceX Labs

## References

- [https://tracexlabs.com/releases/hrm-10-preauth-admin-takeover.html](https://tracexlabs.com/releases/hrm-10-preauth-admin-takeover.html)
- [https://vuldb.com/cve/CVE-2026-108972](https://vuldb.com/cve/CVE-2026-108972)

## Related threats

- [SourceCodester Human Resource Management IDOR in detailview.php](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-10624-sourcecodester-human-resource-management-idor-in-detailview-php)