Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 1.3.3.379
- Affected Plugin
- Surfer – WordPress Plugin
- Affected Version
<= 1.3.2.357- CVSS
- 5.4Medium
- Weakness type
- CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
- CVE
CVE-2023-35037
At a glance
CVE-2023-35037 is a medium-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Surfer WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.3.2.357. It carries a CVSS score of 5.4 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). The root cause is a missing authorization check on a reachable function. The issue is fixed in version 1.3.3.379; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed September 2023, reported by Jonas Höbenreich.
Vulnerability Overview
The Surfer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access and modification of data due to missing capability checks on several functions, such as remove_post_draft_connection, check_draft_status, get_locations, get_ajax_surfer_connect_url, disconnect_surfer_from_wp, and check_connection_status called via AJAX actions in versions up to, and including, 1.3.2.357. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level access and above, to modify the connection details for the plugin and check the status details of posts.
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-862: Missing Authorization
Reaching this weakness in Surfer <= 1.3.2.357 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 Surfer the fix is 1.3.3.379: builds <= 1.3.2.357 are affected, anything from 1.3.3.379 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 1.3.3.379, 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: Surfer 1.3.3.379 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Same weakness class
Other vulnerabilities in Surfer – WordPress Plugin
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