CVE-2024-11272 in Contact Form & SMTP Plugin for WordPress by PirateForms
Summary
by MITRE • 03/25/2025
The Contact Form & SMTP Plugin for WordPress by PirateForms WordPress plugin before 2.6.0 does not sanitise and escape some of its settings, which could allow high privilege users such as admin to perform Stored Cross-Site Scripting attacks even when the unfiltered_html capability is disallowed (for example in multisite setup).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/25/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-11272 affects the Contact Form & SMTP Plugin for WordPress developed by PirateForms, specifically versions prior to 2.6.0. This represents a critical security flaw that undermines the integrity of WordPress installations using this plugin. The issue stems from insufficient input validation and output escaping mechanisms within the plugin's settings handling functionality, creating a pathway for malicious code execution through stored cross-site scripting attacks. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it targets high-privilege users including administrators, who typically possess elevated capabilities within the WordPress ecosystem.
The technical flaw manifests in the plugin's failure to properly sanitise and escape user-controllable settings parameters. When administrators configure the plugin's settings, the input values are not adequately filtered or escaped before being stored in the database and subsequently rendered in the admin interface. This creates a persistent XSS vulnerability where malicious scripts can be injected into the plugin's configuration settings and then executed whenever the settings page is accessed by authenticated users. The vulnerability is exacerbated by the fact that it can be exploited even in multisite configurations where the unfiltered_html capability is explicitly restricted, which is a standard security practice to prevent arbitrary HTML injection in multi-user environments.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant for WordPress administrators and site owners who rely on the PirateForms plugin for contact form functionality and email delivery. Attackers with administrative privileges can leverage this vulnerability to execute malicious scripts in the context of the victim's browser, potentially leading to session hijacking, privilege escalation, or data exfiltration. In a multisite environment, where multiple users manage different sites within a single WordPress installation, the risk amplifies as compromised administrators could affect other sites within the network. The stored nature of the XSS attack means that the malicious payload persists in the database and affects all subsequent users who access the affected plugin settings, making the vulnerability particularly dangerous for long-term exploitation.
Security mitigations for this vulnerability primarily involve immediate patching of the affected plugin to version 2.6.0 or later, which includes proper sanitisation and escaping mechanisms for all user-controllable settings. Administrators should also implement additional defensive measures such as monitoring plugin settings changes and conducting regular security audits of installed plugins. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 (Cross-Site Scripting) and follows patterns commonly associated with ATT&CK technique T1548.003 (Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism) when exploited by privileged users. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls and content security policies as additional layers of defense against similar vulnerabilities in their WordPress environments.