CVE-2022-3463 in Contact Form Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 11/07/2022
The Contact Form Plugin WordPress plugin before 4.3.13 does not validate and escape fields when exporting form entries as CSV, leading to a CSV injection
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/02/2025
The Contact Form Plugin for WordPress represents a widely deployed solution for managing user submissions and form data within web applications. This particular vulnerability affects versions prior to 4.3.13 and stems from inadequate input validation and output escaping mechanisms when processing form entries for CSV export functionality. The flaw manifests when administrators or users attempt to export form submissions to comma-separated values format, creating a potential vector for malicious data injection that could compromise system integrity and user security.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the improper sanitization of user-provided data within the CSV export module. When form entries contain malicious payloads such as formula expressions beginning with special characters like equals sign, plus, or minus, these inputs are directly written to the CSV file without appropriate escaping or validation. This behavior creates a CSV injection vulnerability that allows attackers to execute arbitrary commands or manipulate spreadsheet calculations when the exported file is opened in applications like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets. The vulnerability specifically aligns with CWE-1236, which addresses the improper neutralization of special elements used in a CSV file, and falls under the broader category of injection flaws that can lead to arbitrary code execution in spreadsheet applications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data corruption, as it can enable sophisticated attacks targeting end-users who open the malicious CSV files. When spreadsheet applications automatically interpret certain CSV content as formulas, attackers can leverage this behavior to inject malicious code that executes upon file opening. This creates a potential for phishing attacks, data exfiltration, or system compromise through the exploitation of user trust and the automatic execution features inherent in spreadsheet applications. The vulnerability affects not only the plugin's export functionality but also represents a broader security gap in how form data is handled and processed within WordPress environments.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including upgrading to Contact Form Plugin version 4.3.13 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address the CSV injection vulnerability. Additionally, administrators should consider implementing additional safeguards such as restricting CSV export permissions to trusted users only, monitoring export activities for suspicious patterns, and educating users about the risks of opening untrusted CSV files. Security teams should also review their incident response procedures to ensure proper handling of potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of input validation and output escaping in web applications, particularly when dealing with data export functionalities that may be processed by external applications. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls and content filtering mechanisms to detect and prevent malicious CSV content from being generated or distributed through the affected plugin.