Hybrid Composer <= 1.4.6 - Missing Authorization to Arbitrary Options Update
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 1.4.7
- Affected Plugin
- Hybrid Composer
- Affected Version
<= 1.4.6- CVSS
- 6.5Medium
- Weakness type
- CWE-287 · Improper Authentication
- CVE
CVE pending
At a glance
This record tracks a medium-severity Improper Authentication vulnerability in the Hybrid Composer WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.4.6. It carries a CVSS score of 6.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 1.4.7; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed July 2019, reported by rootetsy.
Vulnerability Overview
The Hybrid Composer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass due to a missing capability check on the hc_ajax_save_option function in versions up to, and including, 1.4.6. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to fully access and modify administrative settings/actions.
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.
CWE-287: Improper Authentication
Reaching this weakness in Hybrid Composer <= 1.4.6 takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. Improper authentication means the mechanism that proves who a caller is can be satisfied without the secret it was supposed to require.
An attacker authenticates as another user — administrators included — without ever knowing a password, so password policies and login rate limits never come into play. For Hybrid Composer the fix is 1.4.7: builds <= 1.4.6 are affected, anything from 1.4.7 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 1.4.7, 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: Hybrid Composer 1.4.7 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Other vulnerabilities in Hybrid Composer
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