CVE-2024-13643 in Zox News Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 02/11/2025
The Zox News - Professional WordPress News & Magazine Theme plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized data modification. This vulnerability can lead to privilege escalation and denial of service conditions due to missing capability checks on the backup_options() and reset_options() functions in all versions up to and including 3.17.0. This vulnerability allows authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access and above to update and delete arbitrary option values on the WordPress site. Attackers can exploit this issue to update the default user role for registration to Administrator and enable user registration, thereby gaining administrative access to the vulnerable site. Additionally, they could delete critical options, causing errors that may disrupt the site's functionality and deny service to legitimate users.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/11/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-13643 affects the Zox News WordPress theme plugin, specifically targeting versions up to and including 3.17.0. This represents a critical authorization flaw that undermines the fundamental security model of WordPress installations. The issue stems from insufficient capability checks within the plugin's codebase, particularly in the backup_options() and reset_options() functions that are designed to handle administrative operations. The absence of proper access control mechanisms creates a pathway for authenticated attackers to manipulate core WordPress configuration settings without appropriate authorization. This vulnerability directly violates the principle of least privilege and demonstrates a failure in the plugin's security architecture.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability allows attackers with Subscriber-level permissions or higher to execute unauthorized modifications to WordPress options. The flaw exists because the plugin fails to verify whether the requesting user possesses sufficient privileges before executing sensitive operations. When an authenticated user accesses these functions, the system does not validate the user's capability level against the required administrative permissions. This oversight enables attackers to manipulate critical system configurations through seemingly legitimate administrative interfaces. The vulnerability can be exploited through standard WordPress admin interfaces or API endpoints that the plugin exposes for theme management functions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data modification to encompass privilege escalation and denial of service scenarios. Attackers can leverage this weakness to elevate their privileges by modifying WordPress core settings such as default user registration roles and enabling user registration functionality. By changing the default role assigned to new users from subscriber to administrator, attackers can create accounts with full administrative capabilities. This privilege escalation capability transforms a low-privilege account into a fully compromised administrative access point. Additionally, the ability to delete critical WordPress options creates opportunities for service disruption, as removing essential configuration parameters can cause system errors and prevent normal site operations.
From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) and represents a significant weakness in the plugin's permission model. The issue also maps to ATT&CK technique T1078.004 (Valid Accounts: Cloud Accounts) when attackers use the elevated privileges to maintain persistent access. The vulnerability creates an attack surface that allows for both horizontal and vertical privilege escalation within the WordPress environment. Organizations using affected versions of the Zox News theme face substantial risk of complete site compromise, as attackers can manipulate core system parameters to gain persistent administrative access. The denial of service component further compounds the risk, as critical system functions may become unavailable due to the deletion of essential configuration options.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate action from affected organizations. The primary recommendation involves updating to the latest version of the Zox News theme plugin where the capability checks have been properly implemented. System administrators should also conduct thorough security audits of their WordPress installations to identify any unauthorized modifications that may have occurred. Implementing additional monitoring for unusual administrative activities and option modifications can help detect exploitation attempts. Network segmentation and access control measures should be reviewed to limit the potential impact of compromised accounts. Organizations should also consider implementing automated patch management systems to ensure timely updates of all WordPress plugins and themes. Regular security assessments of third-party components and maintaining updated security baselines are essential practices to prevent similar vulnerabilities from compromising WordPress environments.