CVE-2020-29172

LiteSpeed Cache <= 3.6 - Authenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting via IP setting

2020-12-26 00:00

Strategic Overview

Status: Patched in 3.6.1
Affected Plugin: LiteSpeed Cache
Affected Version: <= 3.6
CVSS: 5.5Medium
Weakness type: CWE-79 · Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
CVE: CVE-2020-29172

View all LiteSpeed Cache vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2020-29172 is a medium-severity Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') vulnerability in the LiteSpeed Cache WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 3.6. It carries a CVSS score of 5.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires an authenticated account. The issue is fixed in version 3.6.1; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed December 2020, reported by WonTae Jang.

Vulnerability Overview

A cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the LiteSpeed Cache plugin before 3.6.1 for WordPress can be exploited via the Server IP setting.

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.

CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')

Reaching this weakness in LiteSpeed Cache <= 3.6 takes any authenticated account. Cross-site scripting happens when input from a request is written into a page without being escaped for the context it lands in, so the browser parses attacker-supplied text as markup or script.

Injected script runs with the privileges of whoever views the affected page, which is how these flaws turn into administrator session theft, silent account creation or persistent backdoors in page content. For LiteSpeed Cache the fix is 3.6.1: builds <= 3.6 are affected, anything from 3.6.1 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 3.6.1, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

The attempt arrives as an ordinary request to LiteSpeed Cache: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. None of that substitutes for the fix: LiteSpeed Cache 3.6.1 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

Firewall
Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-29172 https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/8cec5695-1fe5-4349-b78d-2e4f7d3b9908 https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-29172

Related records

Same weakness class

Other vulnerabilities in LiteSpeed Cache

CVSS Vector

5.5

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N

Base

Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges RequiredHigh
User InteractionNone
ScopeChanged
ConfidentialityLow
IntegrityLow
AvailabilityNone

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