Meow Gallery (+ Gallery Block) <= 4.1.9 - Missing Authorization to Arbitrary Options Update

2021-09-02 00:00
WPScanTeam

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 4.2.0
Affected Plugin
Meow Gallery
Affected Version
<= 4.1.9
CVSS
8.8High
Weakness type
CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
CVE
CVE pending
View all Meow Gallery vulnerabilities

At a glance

This record tracks a high-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Meow Gallery WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 4.1.9. It carries a CVSS score of 8.8 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity, availability impact). The root cause is a missing authorization check on a reachable function. The issue is fixed in version 4.2.0; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed September 2021, reported by WPScanTeam.

Vulnerability Overview

The Meow Gallery plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Arbitrary Options Update via the REST API in versions up to, and including, 4.1.9. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to modify otherwise restricted arbitrary site options. This can be leveraged to create new administrative user accounts.

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-862: Missing Authorization

Reaching this weakness in Meow Gallery <= 4.1.9 takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. A missing authorization check means a function is reachable by anyone who can reach the endpoint, because the code never asks whether the caller is allowed to perform the action.

Any user who can reach the endpoint gets to run an action reserved for higher-privileged roles, from reading protected data to changing settings or content. For Meow Gallery the fix is 4.2.0: builds <= 4.1.9 are affected, anything from 4.2.0 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 4.2.0, 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: Meow Gallery 4.2.0 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/67ae29ee-ec3d-41d2-8691-ba1c615d243d

Related records

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