CVE-2022-38456

Ajax Search Lite <= 4.10.3 - Missing Authorization leading to Authenticated (Subscriber+) Sensitive Information Disclosure

2023-02-06 00:00
István Márton

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 4.11
Affected Plugin
Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter
Affected Version
<= 4.10.3
CVSS
4.3Medium
Weakness type
CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
CVE
CVE-2022-38456
View all Ajax Search Lite – Live Search & Filter vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2022-38456 is a medium-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Ajax Search Lite WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 4.10.3. It carries a CVSS score of 4.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Subscriber level or above. The issue is fixed in version 4.11; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed February 2023, reported by István Márton.

Vulnerability Overview

The Ajax Search Lite plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Missing Authorization (leading to Sensitive Information Disclosure) in versions up to, and including, 4.10.3 via the 'searchCF' function. This can allow subscriber-level attackers to extract sensitive data including post metadata from an unprotected Ajax endpoint.

Technical Analysis

The vector marks this flaw as remotely reachable over the network, with low attack complexity — no special timing or configuration is needed, and no interaction from a victim user.

CWE-862: Missing Authorization

Ajax Search Lite <= 4.10.3 carries this weakness at searchCF, and reaching it takes an account at Subscriber level or above. A missing authorization check means a function is reachable by anyone who can reach the endpoint, because the code never asks whether the caller is allowed to perform the action.

Any user who can reach the endpoint gets to run an action reserved for higher-privileged roles, from reading protected data to changing settings or content. For Ajax Search Lite the fix is 4.11: builds <= 4.10.3 are affected, anything from 4.11 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 4.11, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

Because it turns on account access, WordSec's login security is the relevant layer: role-based two-factor, captcha and brute-force limits raise the cost of getting the account this needs. None of that substitutes for the fix: Ajax Search Lite 4.11 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Login Security
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-38456https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/5f2c157b-cd5a-459d-8e26-859e686148dchttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-38456

Related records

Vulnerability data © Defiant, Inc., provided under the Wordfence Intelligence T&C