{"id":36614,"date":"2025-05-09T08:52:55","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T08:52:55","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-05-22T05:08:43","modified_gmt":"2025-05-22T05:08:43","slug":"cve-2024-13418-critical-arbitrary-file-upload-vulnerability-in-multiple-wordpress-plugins-and-themes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2024-13418-critical-arbitrary-file-upload-vulnerability-in-multiple-wordpress-plugins-and-themes\/","title":{"rendered":"CVE-2024-13418: Critical Arbitrary File Upload Vulnerability in Multiple WordPress Plugins and Themes<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"

Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n

In today’s discussion, we focus on a critical cybersecurity vulnerability, CVE-2024-13418, that affects multiple plugins and themes for WordPress, a popular content management system (CMS) widely utilized by many websites globally. This vulnerability is particularly severe as it allows an attacker with merely Subscriber-level access to upload arbitrary files, potentially leading to remote code execution. The gravity of this issue lies in the fact that it impacts the integrity and availability of the system, potentially leading to unauthorized system access<\/a> and data leakage.<\/p>\n

Vulnerability Summary<\/strong><\/p>\n

CVE ID: CVE-2024-13418
\nSeverity: Critical (8.8)
\nAttack Vector: Network
\nPrivileges Required: Low (Subscriber-level Access)
\nUser Interaction: Required
\nImpact: Potential system<\/a> compromise and data leakage<\/p>\n

Affected Products<\/strong><\/p>\n

Product | Affected Versions<\/p>\n

WordPress Plugins<\/a> | Various versions
\nWordPress Themes | Various versions<\/a><\/p>\n

How the Exploit Works<\/strong><\/p>\n

The vulnerability lies in the ajaxUploadFonts() function, which does not have a proper capability check. An authenticated attacker with Subscriber-level access<\/a> can exploit this to upload arbitrary files to the targeted system. These files could contain malicious scripts or codes that, when executed, can lead to full system<\/a> compromise. This allows the attacker to execute arbitrary commands<\/a>, modify system settings, exfiltrate sensitive data, or deploy further malware onto the system.<\/p>\n

Conceptual Example Code<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here is a conceptual example of how an attacker might exploit this vulnerability<\/a>:<\/p>\n

POST \/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php HTTP\/1.1\nHost: target.example.com\nContent-Type: multipart\/form-data; boundary=----WebKitFormBoundary7MA4YWxkTrZu0gW\n------WebKitFormBoundary7MA4YWxkTrZu0gW\nContent-Disposition: form-data; name=\"action\"\nupload-font\n------WebKitFormBoundary7MA4YWxkTrZu0gW\nContent-Disposition: form-data; name=\"font\"; filename=\"malicious.php\"\nContent-Type: application\/php\n\n------WebKitFormBoundary7MA4YWxkTrZu0gW\nContent-Disposition: form-data; name=\"fontname\"\nmalicious\n------WebKitFormBoundary7MA4YWxkTrZu0gW--<\/code><\/pre>\n
In this example, the attacker uses the “upload-font” action to upload a malicious PHP file<\/a>. Once uploaded, this script can be used to execute arbitrary<\/a> shell commands on the server.<\/p>\n
Countermeasures<\/strong><\/p>\n
The best mitigation strategy is to apply the vendor patch as soon as it becomes available. If it’s not immediately possible, a temporary mitigation can be implementing a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) to monitor and block malicious requests. Regularly updating all WordPress plugins<\/a> and themes to the latest versions can also help protect against known vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Overview In today’s discussion, we focus on a critical cybersecurity vulnerability, CVE-2024-13418, that affects multiple plugins and themes for WordPress, a popular content management system (CMS) widely utilized by many websites globally. This vulnerability is particularly severe as it allows an attacker with merely Subscriber-level access to upload arbitrary files, potentially leading to remote code […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"vendor":[],"product":[],"attack_vector":[80],"asset_type":[],"severity":[],"exploit_status":[],"class_list":["post-36614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","attack_vector-rce"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t