CVE-2023-25972 in Старт Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 06/15/2023
Auth. (admin+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in IKSWEB WordPress ????? plugin <= 3.7 versions.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/15/2023
The CVE-2023-25972 vulnerability represents a critical stored cross-site scripting flaw within the IKSWEB WordPress plugin, affecting versions up to and including 3.7. This vulnerability specifically targets administrative users with privileges equal to or greater than administrator level, making it particularly dangerous in environments where plugin administrators have elevated access rights. The vulnerability resides in the plugin's handling of user input within administrative interfaces, where unfiltered data is directly stored and subsequently rendered without proper sanitization or encoding mechanisms. This flaw allows authenticated attackers with admin+ privileges to inject malicious scripts that persist in the application's database and execute whenever affected pages are accessed by other users.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding within the plugin's administrative components. When administrators or privileged users interact with the plugin's management interface, the application fails to properly sanitize user-supplied data before storing it in the database. This stored data is then retrieved and displayed in subsequent page requests without adequate HTML escaping or context-appropriate encoding, creating a classic stored XSS vector. The vulnerability's classification as CWE-79 - Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') reflects the fundamental failure in input sanitization and output encoding practices. The attack requires minimal privileges since it targets authenticated administrative users, making it particularly insidious as it can be exploited by insiders or compromised administrator accounts.
The operational impact of CVE-2023-25972 extends beyond simple script execution, as it enables attackers to potentially escalate privileges, steal session cookies, perform unauthorized administrative actions, or exfiltrate sensitive data from the WordPress environment. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to create malicious administrative accounts, modify plugin configurations, or redirect users to phishing sites. The persistent nature of stored XSS means that the malicious payload remains active until manually removed from the database, potentially affecting all users who access the compromised plugin interfaces. This vulnerability directly maps to ATT&CK technique T1059.007 - Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript, and T1566.002 - Phishing: Spearphishing Attachments, as it enables both client-side code execution and social engineering attacks through compromised user sessions.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2023-25972 should prioritize immediate plugin updates to versions that address the vulnerability, as the vendor has likely released patches containing proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit administrative access to critical systems and employ Web Application Firewalls with XSS detection capabilities. Additionally, administrators should conduct regular security audits of installed plugins and enforce strict input validation policies throughout the application. The remediation process should include thorough database scanning to identify any previously injected malicious payloads and comprehensive user session monitoring to detect unauthorized activities. Security teams should also consider implementing Content Security Policy headers and regular security scanning of WordPress installations to prevent similar vulnerabilities from being introduced through third-party plugins.