SearchWP Live Ajax Search <= 1.6.2 - Directory Traversal and Local File Inclusion
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 1.6.3
- Affected Plugin
- SearchWP Live Ajax Search
- Affected Version
1.0 – 1.6.2- CVSS
- 9.1Critical
- Weakness type
- CWE-98 · Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion')
- CVE
CVE-2022-3227
At a glance
CVE-2022-3227 is a critical-severity Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion') vulnerability in the SearchWP Live Ajax Search WordPress plugin, affecting versions 1.0 – 1.6.2. It carries a CVSS score of 9.1 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity impact). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 1.6.3; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed September 2022, reported by Muhammad Zeeshan (Xib3rR4dAr).
Vulnerability Overview
The SearchWP Live Ajax Search plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Directory Traversal via the 'swpengine' parameter used by the 'searchwp_live_search' AJAX action in versions up to, and including, 1.6.2. This allows unauthenticated attackers to include and execute arbitrary local PHP files.
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, integrity.
CWE-98: Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion')
SearchWP Live Ajax Search 1.0 – 1.6.2 carries this weakness at swpengine, and reaching it takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. PHP file inclusion means a path used by include or require is built from request data, so the file that gets executed is under the caller's influence.
Including an attacker-influenced file executes its contents, which is why this class is routinely chained with an upload or log-poisoning step to reach code execution. For SearchWP Live Ajax Search the fix is 1.6.3: builds 1.0 – 1.6.2 are affected, anything from 1.6.3 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 1.6.3, or a newer patched version
How does WordSec protect against this?
The attempt arrives as an ordinary request to SearchWP Live Ajax Search: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. Classes like this one can leave something behind, so the staged malware scanner is the second half: it looks for dropped files and modified code rather than for the request that created them. None of that substitutes for the fix: SearchWP Live Ajax Search 1.6.3 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Firewall
- Scanner
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Other vulnerabilities in SearchWP Live Ajax Search
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