CVE-2022-1007 in Advanced Booking Calendar Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 04/11/2022
The Advanced Booking Calendar WordPress plugin before 1.7.1 does not sanitise and escape the room parameter before outputting it back in an admin page, leading to a Reflected Cross-Site Scripting issue
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/13/2022
The Advanced Booking Calendar WordPress plugin version 1.7.0 and earlier contains a critical reflected cross-site scripting vulnerability that stems from inadequate input sanitization and output escaping mechanisms. This vulnerability affects the plugin's admin interface where the room parameter is processed without proper validation, creating an attack vector that can be exploited by malicious actors to inject malicious scripts into the admin environment. The flaw exists in the plugin's handling of user-supplied data within the administrative context, specifically when rendering the room parameter back to the browser interface.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability demonstrates a classic reflected xss flaw where the room parameter from user input is directly incorporated into the HTML output without appropriate sanitization measures. This allows attackers to craft malicious URLs containing script payloads that, when executed in the context of an authenticated administrator's browser session, can perform unauthorized actions. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it targets the WordPress admin interface, where privileged users are likely to be authenticated and have elevated permissions.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to WordPress installations using the affected plugin version. An attacker could exploit this flaw by sending phishing emails or crafting malicious links that, when clicked by an administrator, would execute malicious scripts in their browser. The reflected nature of the vulnerability means that the attack payload is not stored on the server but rather reflected back to the user's browser through the application's response. This makes the attack more difficult to detect and prevents persistent exploitation through server-side storage mechanisms.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws in software applications. The weakness manifests in the plugin's failure to properly escape output data, creating an environment where malicious scripts can be executed in the context of a trusted administrative session. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1059.001 for command and scripting interpreter and T1566.001 for spearphishing attachment, as attackers could leverage this vulnerability to execute malicious code through crafted administrative interfaces. The attack surface is further expanded by the fact that administrators often have extensive privileges within WordPress environments, making successful exploitation potentially devastating.
Organizations should immediately update to Advanced Booking Calendar plugin version 1.7.1 or later to remediate this vulnerability. The update addresses the core issue by implementing proper input sanitization and output escaping mechanisms for the room parameter. Additionally, administrators should implement additional security measures such as role-based access controls, regular security audits, and monitoring of administrative interfaces for suspicious activity. Network segmentation and web application firewalls can provide additional defense-in-depth measures to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. Security teams should also consider implementing automated vulnerability scanning tools to identify potentially affected installations and ensure comprehensive protection across their WordPress environments.