FAQs Manager <= 1.0 - SQL Injection

2013-03-22 00:00
m3tamantra

Strategic Overview

Status
Unpatched
Affected Plugin
FAQs Manager
Affected Version
<= 1.0
CVSS
7.2High
Weakness type
CWE-89 · Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection')
CVE
CVE pending
View all FAQs Manager vulnerabilities

At a glance

This record tracks a high-severity Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection') vulnerability in the FAQs Manager WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.0. It carries a CVSS score of 7.2 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity, availability impact). No fixed release has been reported yet; treat installations running this software as exposed. Disclosed March 2013, reported by m3tamantra.

Vulnerability Overview

The FAQs Manager plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to blind SQL Injection via the ‘order’ and 'orderby' parameters in versions up to, and including, 1.0 due to insufficient escaping on the user supplied parameter and lack of sufficient preparation on the existing SQL query. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with low-level privileges 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 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')

FAQs Manager <= 1.0 carries this weakness at order, 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. No fixed build of this plugin is recorded for FAQs Manager yet, so installs running <= 1.0 stay exposed until the vendor ships one.

Remediation

No known patch available. Please review the vulnerability's details in depth and employ mitigations based on your organization's risk tolerance. It may be best to uninstall the affected software and find a replacement.

How does WordSec protect against this?

The attempt arrives as an ordinary request to FAQs Manager: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. No patched version is recorded yet, which is the case where a filtering layer matters most, because there is nothing to update to.

  • Firewall
  • Alerts

External References

Related records

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