CVE-2014-9397 in twimp-wp
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the twimp-wp plugin for WordPress allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of administrators for requests that conduct cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks via the message_format parameter in the twimp-wp.php page to wp-admin/options-general.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/10/2022
The CVE-2014-9397 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within the twimp-wp WordPress plugin that exposes administrative sessions to unauthorized manipulation. This vulnerability specifically targets the plugin's handling of user input through the message_format parameter in the twimp-wp.php file, which is subsequently processed within the wp-admin/options-general.php administrative interface. The flaw enables remote attackers to craft malicious requests that can exploit the trust relationship between the authenticated administrator and the WordPress admin interface, potentially allowing for privilege escalation and unauthorized administrative actions.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient validation and sanitization of the message_format parameter within the plugin's codebase. When administrators access the plugin's configuration page, the application fails to implement proper CSRF protection mechanisms such as anti-forgery tokens or referer validation. This absence of security controls creates an exploitable condition where an attacker can construct a malicious web page or email that, when visited by an authenticated administrator, automatically submits requests to the WordPress admin interface. The vulnerability's exploitation pathway directly connects to cross-site scripting capabilities through the same parameter, creating a multi-vector attack surface.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple CSRF attacks to encompass potential administrative takeover and persistent XSS delivery mechanisms. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can execute arbitrary code within the context of the administrator's session, potentially leading to complete system compromise. The attack requires minimal user interaction beyond visiting a malicious page, making it particularly dangerous in environments where administrators frequently access potentially untrusted web content. The vulnerability affects WordPress installations running the affected twimp-wp plugin version, with the attack vector being particularly effective in environments where administrators have elevated privileges and are actively browsing the internet.
Security mitigations for CVE-2014-9397 should focus on immediate plugin updates and implementation of comprehensive CSRF protection measures. The primary remediation involves upgrading to the patched version of the twimp-wp plugin that includes proper token generation and validation mechanisms. Organizations should also implement additional security layers including web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious parameter patterns, and ensure that all administrative interfaces employ robust CSRF protection techniques. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352 which specifically addresses cross-site request forgery weaknesses, and follows ATT&CK technique T1078 for valid accounts and T1213 for data from information repositories. Network segmentation and privileged access controls should be implemented to limit the potential damage from successful exploitation, while regular security audits should verify that all plugins maintain proper input validation and CSRF protection mechanisms.