DesignThemes Core Features <= 4.7 - Missing Authorization to Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Read via dt_process_imported_file
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 4.8
- Affected Plugin
- DesignThemes Core Features
- Affected Version
<= 4.7- CVSS
- 7.5High
- Weakness type
- CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
- CVE
CVE-2024-13471
At a glance
CVE-2024-13471 is a high-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the DesignThemes Core Features WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 4.7. It carries a CVSS score of 7.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality impact). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 4.8; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed March 2025, reported by Tonn.
Vulnerability Overview
The DesignThemes Core Features plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access of data due to a missing capability check on the dt_process_imported_file function in all versions up to, and including, 4.7. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to read arbitrary files on the underlying operating system.
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.
CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Reaching this weakness in DesignThemes Core Features <= 4.7 takes no account at all. Path traversal happens when user-controlled text is used to build a filesystem path without being constrained to an intended directory, so sequences like ../ walk the resolved path somewhere else.
Depending on the operation, it means reading files outside the intended folder — wp-config.php being the usual target — or writing to and deleting paths the web server can touch. For DesignThemes Core Features the fix is 4.8: builds <= 4.7 are affected, anything from 4.8 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 4.8, or a newer patched version
How does WordSec protect against this?
Requests carrying this pattern arrive without a session, so nothing upstream of the firewall gets a chance to reject them: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. None of that substitutes for the fix: DesignThemes Core Features 4.8 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Firewall
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Other vulnerabilities in DesignThemes Core Features
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