Floating Tweets <= 1.0.1 - Directory Traversal

2013-11-01 00:00
Eugene Dokukin

Strategic Overview

Status
Unpatched
Affected Plugin
Floating Tweets
Affected Version
<= 1.0.1
CVSS
7.5High
Weakness type
CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CVE
CVE pending
View all Floating Tweets vulnerabilities

At a glance

This record tracks a high-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the Floating Tweets WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.0.1. It carries a CVSS score of 7.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality impact). Exploitation requires no authentication. No fixed release has been reported yet; treat installations running this software as exposed. Disclosed November 2013, reported by Eugene Dokukin.

Vulnerability Overview

The Floating Tweets plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Directory Traversal in versions up to, and including, 1.0.1 via the 'skin' parameter. This allows attackers to read the contents of arbitrary files on the server, which can contain sensitive information.

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')

Floating Tweets <= 1.0.1 carries this weakness at skin, and reaching it takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. 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. No fixed build of this plugin is recorded for Floating Tweets yet, so installs running <= 1.0.1 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 Floating Tweets: 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

Other vulnerabilities in Floating Tweets

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