Download Manager <= 2.8.7 - Privilege Escalation

2016-01-19 00:00
James Golovich

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 2.8.8
Affected Plugin
Download Manager
Affected Version
< 2.8.8
CVSS
6.5Medium
Weakness type
CWE-269 · Improper Privilege Management
CVE
CVE pending
View all Download Manager vulnerabilities

At a glance

This record tracks a medium-severity Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in the Download Manager WordPress plugin, affecting versions < 2.8.8. It carries a CVSS score of 6.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high integrity impact). The issue is fixed in version 2.8.8; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed January 2016, reported by James Golovich.

Vulnerability Overview

The Download Manager plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in versions up to, and including, 2.8.7. This is due to unchecked use of the extract() function which makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level permissions and above, to edit user metadata, including their role.

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. A successful exploit has high impact on integrity.

CWE-269: Improper Privilege Management

Download Manager < 2.8.8 carries this weakness at extract(), and reaching it takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. Improper privilege management means the code lets an account end up with capabilities its role should not have.

It converts a low-privileged account into an administrative one, which makes every other restriction on the site irrelevant. For Download Manager the fix is 2.8.8: builds < 2.8.8 are affected, anything from 2.8.8 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 2.8.8, 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: Download Manager 2.8.8 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Login Security
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/c59cddfb-c434-4a69-9c1c-7d58f022c1aa

Related records

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