WPS Cleaner <= 1.4.4 - Missing Authorization Checks

2019-07-23 00:00
Julio Potier

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 1.4.5
Affected Plugin
WPS Cleaner
Affected Version
<= 1.4.4
CVSS
6.3Medium
Weakness type
CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
CVE
CVE pending
View all WPS Cleaner vulnerabilities

At a glance

This record tracks a medium-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the WPS Cleaner WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.4.4. It carries a CVSS score of 6.3 (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 1.4.5; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed July 2019, reported by Julio Potier.

Vulnerability Overview

The WPS Cleaner plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass in versions up to, and including, 1.4.4. This is due to missing capability and nonce checks on 7 different functions found in the '/classes/plugin.php' file. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with minimal permissions, such as a subscriber, to perform a variety of actions such as deleting arbitrary files, creating zip archives, deleting zip archives, and deleting alerts among some additional actions.

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 WPS Cleaner <= 1.4.4 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 WPS Cleaner the fix is 1.4.5: builds <= 1.4.4 are affected, anything from 1.4.5 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 1.4.5, 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: WPS Cleaner 1.4.5 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Login Security
  • Alerts

External References

Related records

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