Display custom fields in the frontend – Post and User Profile Fields <= 1.2.0 - Missing Authorization via vg_display_data shortcode
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 1.2.1
- Affected Version
<= 1.2.0- CVSS
- 6.5Medium
- Weakness type
- CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
- CVE
CVE-2023-31073
At a glance
CVE-2023-31073 is a medium-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Display custom fields in the frontend WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.2.0. It carries a CVSS score of 6.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality impact). The root cause is a missing authorization check on a reachable function. The issue is fixed in version 1.2.1; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed April 2023, reported by Yuki Haruma.
Vulnerability Overview
The Display custom fields in the frontend – Post and User Profile Fields plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access of data due to a missing capability check on the display_object_data_shortcode function referenced by the vg_display_data shortcode in versions up to, and including, 1.2.0. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers , with subscriber-level access and above, to access other users' metadata.
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.
CWE-862: Missing Authorization
Reaching this weakness in Display custom fields in the frontend <= 1.2.0 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 Display custom fields in the frontend the fix is 1.2.1: builds <= 1.2.0 are affected, anything from 1.2.1 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 1.2.1, 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: Display custom fields in the frontend 1.2.1 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Other vulnerabilities in Display custom fields in the frontend – Post and User Profile Fields
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