CVE-2024-53778 in Essential Breadcrumbs Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 12/01/2024
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in Essential Marketer Essential Breadcrumbs allows Stored XSS.This issue affects Essential Breadcrumbs: from n/a through 1.1.1.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/22/2025
The CVE-2024-53778 vulnerability represents a critical security flaw in the Essential Breadcrumbs plugin for WordPress, specifically impacting versions ranging from an unspecified initial version through 1.1.1. This vulnerability demonstrates a dangerous convergence of Cross-Site Request Forgery and Stored Cross-Site Scripting attack vectors, creating a particularly dangerous threat landscape for WordPress administrators and end users. The issue stems from inadequate input validation and output escaping mechanisms within the plugin's handling of user-supplied data, allowing malicious actors to inject persistent malicious scripts that execute in the context of authenticated users' browsers.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs when the plugin fails to properly validate and sanitize user input before storing it in the database or rendering it in web pages. When administrators or users interact with the plugin's functionality, particularly in areas where breadcrumbs are generated or modified, the system does not adequately implement anti-CSRF tokens or other protective mechanisms. This allows attackers to craft malicious requests that, when executed by authenticated users, result in the storage of XSS payloads within the plugin's data handling mechanisms. The stored nature of this vulnerability means that the malicious scripts persist in the system and execute whenever affected pages are accessed, creating a continuous threat vector.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates significant risk for WordPress sites using the Essential Breadcrumbs plugin, as it enables attackers to execute arbitrary code in the context of authenticated users' browsers. The consequences can include session hijacking, privilege escalation, data theft, and potential full system compromise. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to establish persistent backdoors, steal administrator credentials, modify website content, or redirect users to malicious sites. The stored nature of the XSS payload means that the attack can affect multiple users over time without requiring repeated exploitation attempts, making it particularly dangerous for high-traffic websites or those with administrative privileges.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery, and CWE-79, which covers Cross-Site Scripting. This dual nature of the vulnerability also maps to several ATT&CK techniques including T1059.007 for Command and Scripting Interpreter and T1566 for Phishing, as attackers can use the XSS component to deliver malicious payloads and establish initial access. The vulnerability represents a failure in the principle of least privilege and proper input validation, as the plugin does not adequately separate user input from executable code. Organizations should immediately update to versions that address this vulnerability, implement proper CSRF token validation, and conduct thorough security assessments of their WordPress installations. Additionally, administrators should monitor for suspicious activity and consider implementing web application firewalls to detect and block exploitation attempts, as this type of vulnerability can be particularly challenging to detect and remediate due to its persistent nature.
The remediation approach should include immediate plugin updates to versions that properly implement CSRF protection and XSS prevention mechanisms. Security teams should also implement input sanitization processes, validate all user-supplied data, and ensure proper output encoding to prevent script execution. Regular security audits of WordPress plugins and themes should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities, and organizations should maintain up-to-date security monitoring systems to detect potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper security testing during plugin development and the need for continuous security assessment of third-party WordPress components to maintain overall system integrity.