CVE-2024-37921

Chained Quiz <= 1.3.2.8 - Missing Authorization

2024-07-09 00:00

Strategic Overview

Status: Patched in 1.3.2.9
Affected Plugin: Chained Quiz
Affected Version: <= 1.3.2.8
CVSS: 5.3Medium
Weakness type: CWE-79 · Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
CVE: CVE-2024-37921

At a glance

CVE-2024-37921 is a medium-severity Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') vulnerability in the Chained Quiz WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.3.2.8. It carries a CVSS score of 5.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 1.3.2.9; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed July 2024, reported by Manab Jyoti Dowarah.

Vulnerability Overview

The Chained Quiz plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access due to a missing capability check on the finalize() function in all versions up to, and including, 1.3.2.8. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to answer quizzes that require logging in.

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 privileges on the target site, and no interaction from a victim user.

CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')

Chained Quiz <= 1.3.2.8 carries this weakness at finalize(), and reaching it takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. Cross-site scripting happens when input from a request is written into a page without being escaped for the context it lands in, so the browser parses attacker-supplied text as markup or script.

Injected script runs with the privileges of whoever views the affected page, which is how these flaws turn into administrator session theft, silent account creation or persistent backdoors in page content. For Chained Quiz the fix is 1.3.2.9: builds <= 1.3.2.8 are affected, anything from 1.3.2.9 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 1.3.2.9, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

The attempt arrives as an ordinary request to Chained Quiz: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. None of that substitutes for the fix: Chained Quiz 1.3.2.9 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

Firewall
Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-37921 https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/69bc3b17-87fd-4e69-b769-85bbf13b214e https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-37921

Related records

Same weakness class

Other vulnerabilities in Chained Quiz

CVSS Vector

5.3

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N

Base

Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges RequiredNone
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
ConfidentialityNone
IntegrityLow
AvailabilityNone

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