CVE-2023-49778 in Sayfa Sayac Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 12/21/2023
Deserialization of Untrusted Data vulnerability in Hakan Demiray Sayfa Sayac.This issue affects Sayfa Sayac: from n/a through 2.6.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/14/2024
The CVE-2023-49778 vulnerability represents a critical deserialization flaw in the Sayfa Sayac plugin developed by Hakan Demiray, impacting versions ranging from the initial release through 2.6. This vulnerability falls under the category of insecure deserialization as classified by CWE-502, where the application processes untrusted data through serialization mechanisms without proper validation or sanitization. The flaw specifically manifests when the plugin handles serialized data from external sources, creating an avenue for malicious actors to inject arbitrary code execution payloads through crafted serialized objects.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the plugin's failure to implement proper input validation and sanitization during the deserialization process. When the application receives serialized data, it does not perform adequate security checks to ensure the integrity and authenticity of the serialized objects. This weakness allows attackers to construct malicious serialized objects that, when processed by the vulnerable plugin, can trigger unintended code execution. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it operates at the core serialization layer where data integrity should be paramount, making it susceptible to various exploitation techniques including remote code execution and privilege escalation attacks.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to WordPress installations using the affected plugin, as it can be exploited remotely without authentication. The impact extends beyond simple data corruption or service disruption to potentially allow full system compromise. Attackers can leverage this flaw to execute arbitrary commands on the affected server, potentially gaining unauthorized access to sensitive data, installing backdoors, or using the compromised system as a launch point for further attacks within the network infrastructure. The vulnerability's exploitation can result in complete system takeover, data exfiltration, and persistent presence within the target environment, making it a high-priority security concern for any organization relying on vulnerable WordPress installations.
The recommended mitigation strategies for CVE-2023-49778 include immediate patching of the affected plugin to version 2.7 or later, which contains the necessary security fixes to prevent deserialization attacks. Organizations should also implement network-level protections such as firewall rules that restrict access to plugin endpoints and employ web application firewalls to detect and block malicious deserialization attempts. Additionally, security monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual deserialization activities and implement proper input validation at all data entry points. The remediation process should also include regular security audits of third-party plugins, maintaining updated security baselines, and implementing principle of least privilege access controls to minimize potential damage from successful exploitation attempts. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1210 for exploiting vulnerabilities in remote services and T1059 for command and script injection, highlighting the multi-faceted attack surface that requires comprehensive defensive measures.