CVE-2024-31307 in Easy Social Share Buttons Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 06/09/2024
Missing Authorization vulnerability in appscreo Easy Social Share Buttons.This issue affects Easy Social Share Buttons: from n/a through 9.4.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/09/2024
The CVE-2024-31307 vulnerability represents a critical missing authorization flaw within the appscreo Easy Social Share Buttons plugin, a widely used social media integration tool for wordpress platforms. This vulnerability exists in versions ranging from the initial release through version 9.4, indicating a prolonged period during which the authorization mechanism was inadequately implemented. The flaw allows unauthorized users to perform administrative actions that should be restricted to authorized personnel only, creating a significant security risk for websites utilizing this plugin. The vulnerability falls under the category of insufficient authorization as classified by CWE-863, which specifically addresses situations where software fails to properly verify that an actor has sufficient authorization to perform a requested operation.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the plugin's failure to properly validate user permissions before executing sensitive operations. When users interact with the social share buttons functionality, the system should verify that the requesting user possesses the appropriate administrative privileges to modify settings, access configuration panels, or perform other privileged actions. However, the missing authorization check allows any authenticated user, regardless of their role or permission level, to bypass these security controls and potentially access restricted features. This misconfiguration creates an attack surface where malicious actors can escalate their privileges or gain unauthorized access to sensitive administrative functions that should remain protected.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it can enable attackers to manipulate social sharing configurations, potentially leading to content injection, data exfiltration, or the compromise of social media accounts linked to the website. Websites running affected versions of the plugin may experience unauthorized modifications to their social sharing capabilities, including the ability to change sharing parameters, modify social media integration settings, or potentially inject malicious code through compromised configuration options. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because social sharing buttons are often integrated with various third-party services and APIs, making the potential attack vector more expansive. This weakness can be exploited by attackers to perform actions such as modifying share counts, changing social media account associations, or manipulating the plugin's behavior to redirect traffic to malicious destinations.
Security professionals should immediately implement mitigation strategies including updating to the latest version of the Easy Social Share Buttons plugin where the authorization flaw has been addressed. Organizations should also conduct comprehensive security assessments of their wordpress installations to identify any other plugins or themes that may be vulnerable to similar authorization bypass issues. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078.004 which covers valid accounts and T1068 which addresses exploit for privilege escalation. Regular monitoring of plugin updates and maintaining an inventory of all installed wordpress plugins is essential for preventing similar issues. Additionally, implementing proper access controls and privilege management within wordpress installations can help mitigate the impact of such vulnerabilities, ensuring that only authorized personnel have access to sensitive administrative functions and configuration options.