CVE-2013-3263 in WP Ultimate Email Marketer plugin
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in the WP Ultimate Email Marketer plugin 1.1.0 and possibly earlier for Wordpress allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) siteurl parameter to campaign/campaignone.php; the (2) action, (3) campaignname, (4) campaignformat, or (5) emailtemplate parameter to campaign/campaigntwo.php; the (6) listid parameter to list/edit.php; the (7) campaignid or (8) siteurl parameter to campaign/editcampaign.php; the (9) campaignid parameter to campaign/selectlistb4send.php; the (10) campaignid, (11) campaignname, (12) campaignsubject, or (13) selectedcampaigns parameter to campaign/sendCampaign.php; or the (14) campaignid, (15) campaignname, (16) campaignformat, or (17) action parameter to campaign/updatecampaign.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/12/2017
The CVE-2013-3263 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting the WP Ultimate Email Marketer WordPress plugin version 1.1.0 and potentially earlier releases. This vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output sanitization mechanisms within multiple PHP scripts that handle email campaign management operations. The flaw allows remote attackers to inject malicious web scripts or HTML code into the application's response, creating persistent XSS attack vectors across various endpoints of the plugin's administrative interface.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs through multiple attack vectors that target different PHP files within the plugin's campaign management system. Specifically, the siteurl parameter in campaign/campaignone.php, along with action, campaignname, campaignformat, and emailtemplate parameters in campaign/campaigntwo.php, create injection points where malicious input can be executed. Additional vulnerable parameters include listid in list/edit.php, campaignid and siteurl in campaign/editcampaign.php, and multiple parameters across campaign/selectlistb4send.php and campaign/sendCampaign.php. The vulnerability extends to campaign/updatecampaign.php through campaignid, campaignname, campaignformat, and action parameters, demonstrating a widespread failure in input sanitization throughout the plugin's administrative functionality.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it enables attackers to execute arbitrary scripts in the context of authenticated administrator sessions. This privilege escalation capability allows malicious actors to gain complete control over the WordPress installation, potentially leading to data breaches, unauthorized content modification, and full system compromise. The vulnerability affects the plugin's campaign management features, making it particularly dangerous for email marketing operations where administrators frequently interact with campaign parameters. Attackers can leverage these XSS vectors to steal session cookies, redirect users to malicious sites, or inject malware directly into the WordPress environment.
Security professionals should note this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws in web applications. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this as a web application vulnerability exploitation technique under the T1190 - Exploit Public-Facing Application tactic. The widespread nature of the vulnerability across multiple PHP files indicates a systemic failure in the plugin's security architecture, suggesting that input validation was not consistently implemented throughout the application's codebase. Organizations should immediately update to patched versions of the WP Ultimate Email Marketer plugin or implement temporary mitigations such as input filtering rules in web application firewalls and regular security audits of WordPress plugin installations.
The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation and output encoding in web applications, particularly within administrative interfaces where sensitive operations occur. Given the plugin's functionality in managing email campaigns, attackers could potentially access confidential mailing list data, modify campaign content, or establish persistent backdoors through the XSS exploitation. This represents a significant risk to organizations relying on WordPress for email marketing automation, as the compromise of the plugin's administrative interface can lead to widespread data exposure and operational disruption.