CVE-2017-14126 in Participants Database Plugin
Summary
by MITRE
The Participants Database plugin before 1.7.5.10 for WordPress has XSS.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/24/2025
The Participants Database plugin for WordPress contains a cross-site scripting vulnerability that affects versions prior to 1.7.5.10, representing a critical security flaw that allows attackers to execute malicious scripts in the context of a victim's browser. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, which is one of the most prevalent and dangerous web application security issues. The flaw specifically manifests in how the plugin processes and displays user input without proper sanitization or output encoding, creating an opening for malicious actors to inject harmful code into the application's interface.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs within the plugin's handling of participant data submission and display mechanisms. When users submit information through the plugin's forms or when administrators view participant records, the input data is not adequately filtered or escaped before being rendered back to the browser. This allows an attacker to craft malicious payloads that, when executed, can perform actions such as stealing session cookies, redirecting users to malicious sites, or defacing the participant database interface. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects both front-end user interactions and back-end administrative functions, providing attackers with multiple vectors for exploitation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it can enable more sophisticated attacks within the WordPress environment. Attackers can leverage this XSS flaw to escalate privileges, manipulate participant data, or create persistent backdoors within the plugin's functionality. The vulnerability's presence in the administrative interface means that successful exploitation could lead to complete compromise of the WordPress site, especially if the attacker targets administrators with higher privileges. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving command and control communications, credential access, and privilege escalation through web application attacks.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of the Participants Database plugin to version 1.7.5.10 or later, which contains the necessary input sanitization and output encoding fixes. System administrators should also implement additional security measures such as input validation at multiple layers, output encoding for all dynamic content, and regular security auditing of WordPress plugins. The vulnerability highlights the importance of keeping all WordPress components updated and following security best practices including the principle of least privilege, where administrative functions are restricted to authorized users only. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls and content security policies to provide additional defense-in-depth against similar XSS vulnerabilities in other components of their web applications.