W3SPEEDSTER <= 7.26 - Authenticated (Administrator+) Remote Code Execution
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 7.27
- Affected Plugin
- W3SPEEDSTER
- Affected Version
<= 7.26- CVSS
- 9.1Critical
- Weakness type
- CWE-95 · Improper Neutralization of Directives in Dynamically Evaluated Code ('Eval Injection')
- CVE
CVE-2024-8512
At a glance
CVE-2024-8512 is a critical-severity Improper Neutralization of Directives in Dynamically Evaluated Code ('Eval Injection') vulnerability in the W3SPEEDSTER WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 7.26. It carries a CVSS score of 9.1 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity, availability impact). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Administrator level or above. The issue is fixed in version 7.27; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed October 2024, reported by Lesor101.
Vulnerability Overview
The W3SPEEDSTER plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution in all versions up to, and including, 7.26 via the 'script' parameter of the hookBeforeStartOptimization() function. This is due to the plugin passing user supplied input to eval(). This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Administrator-level access and above, to execute code on the server.
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-95: Improper Neutralization of Directives in Dynamically Evaluated Code ('Eval Injection')
The product receives input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes code syntax before using the input in a dynamic evaluation call (e.g. eval).
Remediation
Update to version 7.27, or a newer patched version
How does WordSec protect against this?
An attacker needs Administrator access first, so the firewall sees the attempt as traffic from a logged-in account: 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: W3SPEEDSTER 7.27 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Firewall
- Scanner
- Alerts
External References
Related records
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