CVE-2023-23489

Easy Digital Downloads < 3.1.0.4 - SQL Injection

2023-01-12 00:00
Joshua Martinelle

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 3.1.0.4
Affected Plugin
Easy Digital Downloads – eCommerce Payments and Subscriptions made easy
Affected Version
<= 3.1.0.3
CVSS
9.8Critical
Weakness type
CWE-89 · Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection')
CVE
CVE-2023-23489
View all Easy Digital Downloads – eCommerce Payments and Subscriptions made easy vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2023-23489 is a critical-severity Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection') vulnerability in the Easy Digital Downloads WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 3.1.0.3. 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 3.1.0.4; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed January 2023, reported by Joshua Martinelle.

Vulnerability Overview

The Easy Digital Downloads plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to SQL Injection in versions before 3.1.0.4 via the 's' parameter used in the 'edd_download_search' AJAX action. This allows unauthenticated attackers to append additional SQL queries into already existing queries that can be used to extract sensitive information from the database.

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-89: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection')

Easy Digital Downloads <= 3.1.0.3 carries this weakness at edd_download_search, and reaching it takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. SQL injection happens when request data is concatenated into a query instead of being bound as a parameter, letting an attacker change the structure of the statement rather than just its values.

A working injection can read any table the database user can see, which on a WordPress install means user records, password hashes and session or API secrets stored in options. For Easy Digital Downloads the fix is 3.1.0.4: builds <= 3.1.0.3 are affected, anything from 3.1.0.4 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 3.1.0.4, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

The attempt arrives as an ordinary request to Easy Digital Downloads: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. None of that substitutes for the fix: Easy Digital Downloads 3.1.0.4 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Firewall
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-23489https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/508b6466-2786-4d6b-9ab2-772050af4803https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-23489

Related records

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