CVE-2024-37518 in Events Calendar Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 01/02/2025
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in The Events Calendar The Events Calendar allows Cross Site Request Forgery.This issue affects The Events Calendar: from n/a through 6.5.1.4.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/16/2025
The Cross-Site Request Forgery vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-37518 resides within The Events Calendar plugin, a widely used WordPress event management solution that has been impacted by this security flaw across versions from the initial release through 6.5.1.4. This vulnerability represents a critical weakness in the plugin's authorization mechanisms that could allow malicious actors to execute unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users. The flaw specifically undermines the plugin's ability to verify the authenticity of requests originating from legitimate administrative interfaces, creating a pathway for attackers to manipulate event data and administrative functions without proper user consent or awareness.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence or improper implementation of anti-CSRF tokens within the plugin's administrative forms and API endpoints. When administrators interact with The Events Calendar's administrative interface, the plugin should validate that requests originate from legitimate sources by requiring specific tokens that correlate with the user's current session. However, this validation mechanism is either missing entirely or inadequately implemented, allowing attackers to craft malicious requests that leverage the authenticated user's session to perform actions such as creating, modifying, or deleting events, managing attendee lists, or altering plugin configurations. This weakness directly maps to CWE-352, which defines Cross-Site Request Forgery as a vulnerability where an attacker tricks a victim into performing actions they did not intend to execute, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.002 which describes the use of web application vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data manipulation to potentially compromise the entire event management infrastructure within affected WordPress installations. Attackers could exploit this flaw to inject malicious events into calendars, alter existing event details to spread misinformation, or even use the compromised system as a staging ground for further attacks. The vulnerability's scope is particularly concerning given that The Events Calendar is used by numerous organizations, businesses, and institutions for critical event coordination and scheduling activities. If exploited, this vulnerability could lead to significant reputational damage, operational disruption, and potential regulatory compliance issues, especially in sectors where event data integrity is paramount. The lack of proper token validation means that any authenticated user session within the WordPress administration area could be leveraged by attackers to execute unauthorized administrative functions.
Organizations utilizing The Events Calendar plugin should immediately implement mitigation strategies to address this vulnerability, with the most effective approach being the immediate upgrade to version 6.5.1.5 or later, which contains the necessary security patches. System administrators should also consider implementing additional protective measures such as web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious cross-site request patterns, ensuring that all administrative access occurs through secure HTTPS connections, and regularly monitoring access logs for unusual activity patterns. The vulnerability's classification as a CSRF weakness also necessitates a review of the organization's overall security posture, including the implementation of proper session management practices and the enforcement of the principle of least privilege for administrative accounts. Security teams should also consider conducting vulnerability assessments to identify any other plugins or components within their WordPress installations that may be susceptible to similar attacks, as CSRF vulnerabilities often exist in interconnected systems. The remediation process should include comprehensive testing to ensure that the patch does not introduce compatibility issues with existing event management workflows while maintaining the integrity of the administrative interface's security mechanisms.