CVE-2020-11514

Rank Math SEO <= 1.0.40.2 - Privilege Escalation via Unprotected REST API Endpoint

2020-03-25 00:00
Ram

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 1.0.41
Affected Plugin
Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings
Affected Version
< 1.0.41
CVSS
9.8Critical
Weakness type
CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
CVE
CVE-2020-11514
View all Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2020-11514 is a critical-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Rank Math SEO WordPress plugin, affecting versions < 1.0.41. It carries a CVSS score of 9.8 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity, availability impact). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 1.0.41; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed March 2020, reported by Ram.

Vulnerability Overview

The Rank Math plugin through 1.0.40.2 for WordPress allows unauthenticated remote attackers to update arbitrary WordPress metadata, including the ability to escalate or revoke administrative privileges for existing users via the unsecured rankmath/v1/updateMeta REST API endpoint.

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, availability — full site compromise territory.

CWE-862: Missing Authorization

Reaching this weakness in Rank Math SEO < 1.0.41 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 Rank Math SEO the fix is 1.0.41: builds < 1.0.41 are affected, anything from 1.0.41 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 1.0.41, 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: Rank Math SEO 1.0.41 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Login Security
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-11514https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/ba1a25e9-bac3-4f76-8324-3035be94da4chttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-11514

Related records

Vulnerability data © Defiant, Inc., provided under the Wordfence Intelligence T&C