Pinterest Automatic <= 4.14.3 - Unuathenticated Arbitrary Options Update
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 4.14.4
- Affected Plugin
- Pinterest Automatic
- Affected Version
<= 4.14.3- CVSS
- 9.8Critical
- Weakness type
- CWE-284 · Improper Access Control
- CVE
CVE-2021-4380
At a glance
CVE-2021-4380 is a critical-severity Improper Access Control vulnerability in the Pinterest Automatic WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 4.14.3. 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 4.14.4; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed September 2021, reported by Jerome Bruandet.
Vulnerability Overview
The Pinterest Automatic plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass due to missing capability checks on the 'wp_pinterest_automatic_parse_request' function and the 'process_form.php' script in versions up to, and including, 1.14.3. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to update arbitrary options on a site that can be used to create new administrative user accounts or redirect unsuspecting site visitors.
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-284: Improper Access Control
Pinterest Automatic <= 4.14.3 carries this weakness at wp_pinterest_automatic_parse_request, and reaching it takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. Improper access control means the code decides what a caller may do using something other than their actual permissions, so the decision can be wrong without any check appearing to be missing.
Whoever can shape the request decides the answer, so the protected action runs for callers the code never meant to allow. For Pinterest Automatic the fix is 4.14.4: builds <= 4.14.3 are affected, anything from 4.14.4 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 4.14.4, 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: Pinterest Automatic 4.14.4 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Other vulnerabilities in Pinterest Automatic
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