CVE-2024-9182 in Maspik Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 05/16/2025
The Maspik WordPress plugin before 2.1.3 does not sanitise and escape some of its settings, which could allow high privilege users such as admin to perform Cross-Site Scripting attacks even when unfiltered_html is disallowed.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/17/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-9182 affects the Maspik WordPress plugin version 2.1.2 and earlier, presenting a critical cross-site scripting risk that undermines the security posture of affected WordPress installations. This issue stems from inadequate input sanitization and output escaping mechanisms within the plugin's administrative settings handling. The vulnerability specifically targets high-privilege users such as administrators who possess the ability to modify plugin configurations, making it particularly dangerous in environments where administrative access is compromised or where attackers can escalate privileges through other means.
The technical flaw manifests in the plugin's failure to properly sanitize user-supplied data within its settings interface. When administrators configure plugin parameters through the WordPress admin dashboard, the input values are not adequately filtered or escaped before being stored or rendered back to the browser. This oversight creates a persistent cross-site scripting vector that can be exploited by malicious actors with administrative privileges. The vulnerability remains exploitable even when the WordPress installation has properly configured the unfiltered_html capability restriction, which typically prevents non-privileged users from injecting malicious scripts. This characteristic makes the vulnerability particularly concerning as it bypasses standard WordPress security controls designed to prevent script injection attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it provides attackers with a persistent foothold within the WordPress environment. An attacker with administrative access can inject malicious JavaScript code that executes in the context of other administrators or users who view the affected plugin settings. This could lead to session hijacking, privilege escalation, data exfiltration, or the deployment of additional malware. The vulnerability's persistence is enhanced by the fact that the malicious scripts remain embedded in the plugin settings and execute every time the affected pages are loaded, creating a long-term threat vector. The attack surface is further expanded due to the plugin's integration with WordPress core functionality, potentially allowing attackers to leverage the compromised administrative session for broader system compromise.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2024-9182 should prioritize immediate plugin updates to version 2.1.3 or later, which contain the necessary sanitization and escaping fixes. System administrators should also conduct thorough security audits of all installed plugins to identify similar vulnerabilities in other third-party components. The remediation process should include reviewing and validating all plugin settings configurations to ensure no malicious scripts have been injected. Additionally, implementing proper input validation and output escaping practices in WordPress plugin development aligns with established security frameworks such as CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting vulnerabilities. Organizations should also consider implementing network-based security controls and monitoring systems to detect anomalous behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper data sanitization in web applications and reinforces the need for comprehensive security testing of all user-controllable inputs within administrative interfaces. This issue also relates to ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript, as it enables attackers to execute malicious JavaScript code within the context of legitimate administrative sessions.