CVE-2024-7816 in Gixaw Chat Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 09/12/2024
The Gixaw Chat WordPress plugin through 1.0 does not have CSRF check in some places, and is missing sanitisation as well as escaping, which could allow attackers to make logged in admin add Stored XSS payloads via a CSRF attack.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/12/2025
The CVE-2024-7816 vulnerability affects the Gixaw Chat WordPress plugin version 1.0 and represents a critical security flaw that combines multiple dangerous conditions. This vulnerability exists due to the absence of Cross-Site Request Forgery protection mechanisms in certain administrative endpoints of the plugin. The flaw is particularly concerning because it occurs within the WordPress admin interface where authenticated users have elevated privileges, making the potential attack surface more dangerous than typical frontend vulnerabilities.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the plugin's failure to implement proper CSRF tokens in its administrative forms and processing endpoints. Additionally, the plugin lacks adequate input sanitization and output escaping mechanisms for user-supplied data. This dual deficiency creates a perfect storm where attackers can craft malicious requests that appear legitimate to the WordPress admin interface, especially when users are logged in with administrative privileges. The absence of sanitization allows malicious data to be stored directly in the database, while the lack of proper escaping means that this stored data can be executed as JavaScript when rendered in the browser.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it enables attackers to execute Stored Cross-Site Scripting attacks against authenticated administrators. When an admin user visits a compromised page or clicks on a malicious link, the stored XSS payload gets executed in their browser context, potentially allowing attackers to steal session cookies, perform actions on behalf of the admin, or even redirect the user to malicious sites. The stored nature of this XSS means that the payload persists in the database and affects any user who views the affected content, making it particularly dangerous for high-privilege accounts.
From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability maps directly to CWE-352 (Cross-Site Request Forgery) and CWE-79 (Cross-Site Scripting) in the Common Weakness Enumeration catalog. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this under T1566 (Phishing) and T1059.007 (Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript) as attackers would likely use social engineering to get administrators to visit malicious pages. The combination of CSRF and XSS creates a particularly dangerous attack vector where an attacker can bypass traditional security measures and gain unauthorized access to administrative functions. Organizations should immediately update to the latest version of the plugin, implement proper input validation at the application level, and consider implementing Content Security Policy headers as additional mitigation measures to protect against such attacks.
The vulnerability demonstrates a fundamental lack of security awareness in the plugin development process, where basic security principles such as input validation, output escaping, and CSRF protection were not properly implemented. This type of flaw is particularly common in third-party WordPress plugins that prioritize functionality over security, highlighting the importance of thorough security reviews and regular updates when using third-party software components.