CVE-2024-13097 Scanner

The WP Finance Plugin is widely used by small to medium-sized companies that require financial functionalities on their WordPress websites. This plugin is specifically designed for managing various financial tasks such as invoicing, expense tracking, and budgeting right from the WordPress dashboard. It is predominantly used by website administrators and financial staff who utilize WordPress for business operations. Given its integration with the WordPress CMS, it serves as an essential tool in extending financial capabilities to WordPress interfaces. Despite its usefulness, the plugin needs to be appropriately secured to prevent exploits like Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) and other vulnerabilities. Regular updates and patching are necessary to ensure it doesn't become a vector for attacks.

The Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the WP Finance Plugin can enable attackers to execute scripts in the browsers of users with high privileges. This is particularly dangerous as XSS attacks can lead to unauthorized access to user sessions and lead to account compromises. The vulnerability arises from inadequate sanitization of a user-input parameter before output, which can be exploited when a user clicks on a malicious link crafted by an attacker. XSS vulnerabilities continue to be a significant threat in web applications, given their potential impact on user data confidentiality and integrity. This particular vulnerability affects versions of the WP Finance Plugin up to 1.3.6.

The vulnerability occurs due to a lack of input sanitization and escaping in a specified parameter within the plugin. This allows attackers to inject and execute malicious scripts in the form of JavaScript in the browsers of high-privileged users. The attack vector is generally through crafted URLs that manipulate the input parameters of the plugin's pages, especially used by the administrative and user interfaces. The potential exploitation happens on specific endpoints like `/wp-admin/admin.php?page=wpfinance`, where the attack can execute JavaScript payloads. The scripts can execute in the context of the victim's session on the affected WordPress site, leading to session hijacking and data exposure.

When exploited, this vulnerability can cause severe security implications for site users and admins. Attackers can hijack user sessions leading to unauthorized access to sensitive information and perform actions on behalf of the users. Additionally, it can lead to unauthorized data manipulation, defacement of the website, and other malicious activities. If administrative users are affected, the impact could also compromise the entire site, making it a severe vulnerability requiring immediate attention. Mitigating this risk involves sanitizing and escaping user inputs effectively, updating the plugin, and enforcing best security practices.

REFERENCES

• https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/d83d7274-55ae-4f35-b65e-6d6e19e36fac/
• https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-13097