CVE-2023-0556

ContentStudio <= 1.2.5 - Missing Authorization

2023-01-06 00:00
Marco Wotschka

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 1.2.6
Affected Plugin
ContentStudio
Affected Version
<= 1.2.5
CVSS
9.8Critical
Weakness type
CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
CVE
CVE-2023-0556
View all ContentStudio vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2023-0556 is a critical-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the ContentStudio WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.2.5. It carries a CVSS score of 9.8 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity, availability impact). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 1.2.6; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed January 2023, reported by Marco Wotschka.

Vulnerability Overview

The ContentStudio plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass due to a missing capability check on several functions in versions up to, and including, 1.2.5. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to obtain the blog metadata (via the function cstu_get_metadata) that includes the plugin's contentstudio_token. Knowing this token allows for other interactions with the plugin such as creating posts in versions prior to 1.2.5, which added other requirements to posting and updating.

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. A successful exploit has high impact on confidentiality, integrity, availability — full site compromise territory.

CWE-862: Missing Authorization

Reaching this weakness in ContentStudio <= 1.2.5 takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. 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 ContentStudio the fix is 1.2.6: builds <= 1.2.5 are affected, anything from 1.2.6 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 1.2.6, 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: ContentStudio 1.2.6 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Login Security
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-0556https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/52db8d41-859a-4d68-8b83-3d3af8f1bf64https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-0556

Related records

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