CVE-2014-3842 in iMember360
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in the iMember360 plugin 3.8.012 through 3.9.001 for WordPress allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) decrypt or (2) encrypt parameter.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/19/2025
The CVE-2014-3842 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw discovered in the iMember360 WordPress plugin version 3.8.012 through 3.9.001. This vulnerability resides within the plugin's handling of user input parameters during encryption and decryption operations, creating a persistent security risk for WordPress sites utilizing this specific plugin version. The flaw specifically affects the decrypt and encrypt parameters, which are processed without adequate sanitization or validation, allowing malicious actors to inject malicious scripts that execute in the context of other users' browsers. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, which is classified as a fundamental web application security weakness that enables attackers to execute arbitrary scripts in victim browsers. The iMember360 plugin's implementation fails to properly escape or validate user-supplied input before processing, creating an attack surface where an attacker can manipulate the plugin's functionality to deliver malicious payloads.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it can enable attackers to perform session hijacking, steal user credentials, manipulate data, and potentially gain administrative access to compromised WordPress installations. When users interact with the vulnerable plugin's encryption or decryption features, their browsers execute the injected malicious scripts, which can redirect them to phishing sites, steal cookies, or perform unauthorized actions on their behalf. The vulnerability's exploitation does not require authentication, making it particularly dangerous as attackers can target any user who interacts with the compromised plugin. The attack vector leverages the plugin's parameter handling mechanism, where the decrypt and encrypt parameters are directly incorporated into the application's output without proper sanitization, creating a persistent XSS vulnerability that remains active as long as the vulnerable plugin version is installed on the WordPress site.
Security practitioners should note that this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for credential access through phishing and T1059.001 for command and scripting interpreter execution. The vulnerability's remediation requires immediate plugin updates to versions that properly sanitize input parameters or implementation of temporary workarounds such as input validation filters. Organizations should implement comprehensive security monitoring to detect exploitation attempts and ensure that all WordPress plugins are regularly updated to their latest secure versions. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation and output encoding in web applications, particularly when handling user-supplied data in cryptographic operations. Additionally, this flaw underscores the necessity of maintaining up-to-date security practices and regular vulnerability assessments to identify and remediate similar issues in third-party WordPress plugins that may not receive timely security updates from their developers.