Like Button Rating <= 2.5.3 - Arbitrary Settings Change

2017-11-02 00:00
Tom Adams

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 2.5.4
Affected Plugin
Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn
Affected Version
<= 2.5.3
CVSS
6.5Medium
Weakness type
CWE-287 · Improper Authentication
CVE
CVE pending
View all Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn vulnerabilities

At a glance

This record tracks a medium-severity Improper Authentication vulnerability in the Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 2.5.3. 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 2.5.4; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed November 2017, reported by Tom Adams.

Vulnerability Overview

The Like Button Rating plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass due to a missing capability check in the 'init' action in versions up to, and including, 2.5.3. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to modify the vulnerable site's settings.

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

Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn <= 2.5.3 carries this weakness at init, and reaching it 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 Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn the fix is 2.5.4: builds <= 2.5.3 are affected, anything from 2.5.4 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 2.5.4, 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: Like Button Rating ♥ LikeBtn 2.5.4 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/227886e8-99d9-49b3-a1a8-b06b02d331bc

Related records

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