WordPress Members / Membership & User Role Editor Plugin Security Misconfiguration Scanner

The WordPress Members / Membership & User Role Editor Plugin is widely used by website administrators and developers to manage user roles and membership capabilities. It allows for fine-tuned access control, enabling users to create or edit roles according to specific requirements. The plugin is typically utilized on WordPress sites that require tailored membership functionality, such as subscription-based websites or exclusive content platforms. Its ease of configuration and integration makes it a popular choice among WordPress users looking to enhance their site's user management capabilities. This plugin bridges the gap between user functionality and WordPress's default settings, providing a more customizable approach to role management.

The identified vulnerability in the WordPress Members plugin allows unauthorized access to error logs, presenting a security misconfiguration risk. This issue arises due to direct access permissions available to certain plugin files, which should not be publicly accessible. Error logs can contain sensitive information that could aid an attacker in compromising the system. The exposure stems from improper restriction settings on crucial plugin paths, allowing for potential data leakage. Without proper log management and access controls, the vulnerability persists, posing a risk to data integrity and privacy. Detection of such exposures is crucial in maintaining the security posture of WordPress sites utilizing this plugin.

The technical details of this vulnerability involve certain endpoints within the WordPress Members plugin being accessible without proper authentication. Vulnerable endpoints include direct paths to plugin administration and role management files. These paths, when accessed, reveal error log information that should remain confidential to administrators. The parameters involved in the error generation and exposure are tied to insufficient access control measures within the plugin's directory structure. Matching the correct conditions might display error messages containing database or script-level faults, making it a significant oversight in setup configurations. The vulnerability check validates the presence of error messages when navigating to specific paths, indicating a misconfiguration.

Exploitation of this security misconfiguration can lead to unauthorized information disclosure, providing attackers with possible insights into the plugin's weaknesses. Such insights could be leveraged to conduct further attacks, including SQL injection or cross-site scripting, by understanding the error patterns and missing control implementations. Additionally, revealing the error logs openly may facilitate targeted attacks against the server, exploiting assumed software or hardware weaknesses. Furthermore, if a malicious actor becomes aware of the site's backend structure through revealed logs, they might develop specific exploits aimed at bypassing existing security measures. Persistent security issues could lead to a compromised site security, affecting credibility and user data safety.

REFERENCES

• https://wordpress.org/plugins/members/