CVE-2024-1775 in Social Login and Register Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 03/02/2024
The Nextend Social Login and Register plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to a self-based Reflected Cross-Site Scripting via the ‘error_description’ parameter in all versions up to, and including, 3.1.12 due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers, with access to a subscriber-level account, to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that execute if they can successfully trick a user into performing an action such as clicking on a link. NOTE: This vulnerability can be successfully exploited on a vulnerable WordPress instance against an OAuth pre-authenticated higher-level user (e.g., administrator) by leveraging a cross-site request forgery in conjunction with a certain social engineering technique to achieve a critical impact scenario (cross-site scripting to administrator-level account creation). However, successful exploitation requires "Debug mode" to be enabled in the plugin's "Global Settings".
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/12/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-1775 affects the Nextend Social Login and Register plugin for WordPress, specifically targeting versions up to and including 3.1.12. This represents a critical security flaw that exploits a self-based reflected cross-site scripting vulnerability through the 'error_description' parameter, demonstrating a significant weakness in the plugin's input validation and output escaping mechanisms. The vulnerability exists within the plugin's handling of OAuth authentication flows where user-provided error descriptions are not properly sanitized before being rendered in web pages, creating an attack surface that can be exploited by malicious actors.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input sanitization practices within the plugin's codebase, where the 'error_description' parameter received from OAuth responses is directly incorporated into HTML output without proper escaping or validation. This flaw aligns with CWE-79, which categorizes cross-site scripting vulnerabilities as a result of inadequate input validation and output encoding. The vulnerability's exploitation requires an attacker to have access to a subscriber-level account, which provides a foothold for more sophisticated attacks. However, the critical aspect of this vulnerability becomes apparent when considering that it can be leveraged against higher-privilege users through a combination of cross-site request forgery and social engineering techniques.
The operational impact of CVE-2024-1775 extends beyond simple script injection, as it can potentially lead to administrator-level account compromise when combined with CSRF attacks and specific social engineering tactics. This creates a dangerous scenario where an attacker with minimal privileges can orchestrate attacks that ultimately target privileged users, making this vulnerability particularly concerning for WordPress installations that rely on social login functionality. The requirement for debug mode to be enabled in the plugin's global settings adds a layer of complexity to exploitation but does not eliminate the threat, as debug modes are sometimes enabled in development environments or during troubleshooting phases.
Security professionals should note that this vulnerability operates under ATT&CK framework technique T1566, which covers social engineering methods including phishing and manipulation of user behavior to achieve unauthorized access. The attack chain involves multiple phases where the initial access through a subscriber account leads to more sophisticated exploitation techniques that can ultimately compromise administrator accounts. Organizations should consider implementing comprehensive monitoring for unusual authentication patterns and error message handling within their WordPress installations. The vulnerability's remediation requires immediate plugin updates to versions that properly sanitize input parameters and implement proper output escaping mechanisms, along with disabling debug modes in production environments to prevent exploitation of the combined attack vectors.