CVE-2022-2599 in Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 08/29/2022
The Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall WordPress plugin before 4.21.83 does not sanitise and escape some parameters before outputting them back in an admin dashboard, leading to Reflected Cross-Site Scripting
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/09/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-2599 affects the Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall WordPress plugin, specifically versions prior to 4.21.83. This issue represents a critical security flaw that exposes WordPress administrators to potential cross-site scripting attacks through the plugin's admin dashboard interface. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output sanitization practices within the plugin's codebase, creating an environment where malicious actors can inject arbitrary script code into the administrative interface.
The technical flaw manifests in the plugin's failure to properly sanitise and escape user-controllable parameters before rendering them within the admin dashboard. When administrators interact with certain plugin functionalities, the application processes input data without sufficient validation mechanisms to prevent malicious script injection. This weakness allows attackers to craft specially formatted requests that, when processed by the vulnerable plugin, result in reflected cross-site scripting conditions. The reflected nature of this vulnerability means that the malicious script code is reflected off the web server back to the victim's browser, making it particularly dangerous in targeted attack scenarios.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates significant risks for WordPress administrators who rely on the plugin for security protection. Attackers can exploit this weakness to execute malicious scripts within the context of the administrator's browser session, potentially leading to session hijacking, privilege escalation, or unauthorized modifications to the WordPress installation. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects the administrative interface where users have elevated privileges, making successful exploitation potentially devastating for the entire WordPress site and its associated data. The reflected nature of the attack means that victims must be tricked into clicking malicious links, but once executed, the attack can persist through the administrator's active session.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws in software applications. This classification indicates that the root cause involves improper neutralization of input during web page generation, allowing malicious scripts to be executed in the victim's browser. From an attack framework perspective, this vulnerability would map to multiple ATT&CK techniques including T1059.001 for command and scripting interpreter and T1566.001 for spearphishing attachment, as attackers could leverage this vulnerability to establish persistent access through malicious script execution. Organizations should prioritize immediate patching to version 4.21.83 or later, as this update addresses the sanitization and escaping mechanisms that were previously inadequate. Additionally, implementing proper input validation, output encoding, and regular security audits of third-party plugins can help prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in the future.