Overview
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) system has identified a significant vulnerability, CVE-2023-1405, in the Formidable Forms WordPress plugin version 6.2 and earlier. This vulnerability allows anonymous users to perform PHP Object Injection, potentially compromising system integrity and exposing sensitive data. Given the extensive use of WordPress plugins, this vulnerability is a cause for concern for administrators and users alike.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2023-1405
Severity: High (7.5 CVSS)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: System compromise and potential data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
Formidable Forms WordPress Plugin | Before 6.2
How the Exploit Works
The vulnerability arises from the Formidable Forms WordPress plugin’s insecure handling of user input. The plugin unserializes user input without proper validation, which could allow an attacker to inject malicious PHP objects. These objects, when executed, could lead to arbitrary code execution, allowing an attacker to gain unauthorized access and control over the system. Moreover, if a suitable gadget is present, the vulnerability can be exploited without any user interaction or privileges.
Conceptual Example Code
Given the nature of this vulnerability, an attacker could exploit it by sending a POST request with a malicious payload. Below is a conceptual example of such a request:
POST /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php HTTP/1.1
Host: target.example.com
Content-Type: application/json
{ "action": "frm_forms_preview", "form": {"form_id": "1", "form_key": "form_key", "item_meta": {"0": "a:1:{i:0;O:8:\"stdClass\":1:{s:4:\"test\";s:15:\"malicious_code\";}}}"}} }In this example, the “malicious_code” represents the injected PHP object. If successful, this injection can lead to unauthorized system access.
Mitigation
To mitigate this vulnerability, users are advised to immediately apply the vendor-supplied patch. If the patch cannot be applied immediately, temporary mitigation can be achieved by employing a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) to identify and block attempts to exploit this vulnerability.
