CVE-2024-9501 in Wp Social Login and Register Social Counter Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 10/26/2024
The Wp Social Login and Register Social Counter plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authentication bypass in all versions up to, and including, 3.0.7. This is due to insufficient verification on the user being returned by the social login token. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to log in as any existing user on the site, such as an administrator, if they have access to the email and the user does not have an already-existing account for the service returning the token.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/26/2024
The CVE-2024-9501 vulnerability affects the Wp Social Login and Register Social Counter plugin for WordPress, representing a critical authentication bypass flaw that undermines the security of user sessions across affected installations. This vulnerability exists in all versions up to and including 3.0.7, making it a widespread concern for WordPress administrators who rely on social login functionality for user authentication. The flaw specifically targets the plugin's handling of social login tokens, where insufficient verification mechanisms fail to properly validate the authenticity of returned user data, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the system.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate validation processes within the plugin's social authentication flow. When users attempt to log in through social platforms such as Google, Facebook, or other supported services, the plugin receives authentication tokens containing user identifiers and email addresses. However, the vulnerability occurs because the system does not sufficiently verify that the returned user data matches the expected authentication parameters. This weakness allows attackers to manipulate the authentication process by providing forged user data that appears legitimate to the plugin's validation system, effectively bypassing standard authentication checks that should prevent unauthorized access to user accounts.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, as it enables unauthenticated attackers to assume the identity of any existing user on the WordPress site, including high-privilege accounts such as administrators or editors. The attack vector requires minimal prerequisites since attackers only need to know a target user's email address and ensure that user does not already have an account with the specific social service providing the token. This creates a particularly dangerous scenario where attackers can systematically target users with known email addresses to gain unauthorized administrative access, potentially leading to complete site compromise, data exfiltration, or malicious content injection. The vulnerability essentially transforms any user account with a known email address into a potential entry point for privilege escalation.
From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-287, which addresses improper authentication issues, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1078.004 for valid accounts, as attackers can leverage legitimate user credentials through social login mechanisms. The flaw represents a classic case of insufficient input validation combined with weak session management, creating a pathway for privilege escalation that could result in full system compromise. Organizations using this plugin should immediately implement mitigations including immediate plugin updates to the latest version, enabling additional security measures such as two-factor authentication, monitoring for suspicious login patterns, and conducting thorough security audits of social login configurations. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of proper authentication flow validation in third-party WordPress plugins, as these components often become attack vectors when they fail to implement robust security controls for user identity verification and session management.