Custom Content Shortcode <= 4.0.1 - Authenticated Arbitrary File Access / Local File Inclusion
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 4.0.2
- Affected Plugin
- Custom Content Shortcode
- Affected Version
<= 4.0.1- CVSS
- 4.3Medium
- Weakness type
- CWE-284 · Improper Access Control
- CVE
CVE-2021-24825
At a glance
CVE-2021-24825 is a medium-severity Improper Access Control vulnerability in the Custom Content Shortcode WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 4.0.1. It carries a CVSS score of 4.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires an authenticated account. The issue is fixed in version 4.0.2; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed February 2022, reported by Francesco Carlucci.
Vulnerability Overview
The Custom Content Shortcode WordPress plugin before 4.0.2 does not validate the data passed to its load shortcode, which could allow Contributor+ (v < 4.0.1) or Admin+ (v < 4.0.2) users to display arbitrary files from the filesystem (such as logs, .htaccess etc), as well as perform Local File Inclusion attacks as PHP files will be executed. Please note that such attack is still possible by admin+ in single site blogs by default (but won't be when either the unfiltered_html or file_edit is disallowed)
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-284: Improper Access Control
Reaching this weakness in Custom Content Shortcode <= 4.0.1 takes any authenticated account. Improper access control means the code decides what a caller may do using something other than their actual permissions, so the decision can be wrong without any check appearing to be missing.
Whoever can shape the request decides the answer, so the protected action runs for callers the code never meant to allow. For Custom Content Shortcode the fix is 4.0.2: builds <= 4.0.1 are affected, anything from 4.0.2 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 4.0.2, 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: Custom Content Shortcode 4.0.2 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Same weakness class
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