CVE-2021-24128 : Security Advisory and Response

This article provides an overview of CVE-2021-24128, a vulnerability found in the Team Members WordPress plugin versions prior to 5.0.4, allowing for Cross-site Scripting attacks by medium-privileged authenticated users.

Understanding CVE-2021-24128

CVE-2021-24128 is an Authenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability identified in the Team Members WordPress plugin versions prior to 5.0.4. The issue arises due to unvalidated input and lack of output encoding, enabling medium-privileged authenticated users to inject malicious scripts or HTML through the 'Description/biography' section of a member.

What is CVE-2021-24128?

The CVE-2021-24128 vulnerability in the Team Members WordPress plugin, versions before 5.0.4, allows medium-privileged authenticated attackers to execute arbitrary web scripts or HTML via the 'Description/biography' of a member.

The Impact of CVE-2021-24128

The impact of CVE-2021-24128 is the potential compromise of user accounts, escalation of privileges, and manipulation of website content through the injection of malicious scripts or HTML by authenticated contributors or higher users.

Technical Details of CVE-2021-24128

CVE-2021-24128 involves:

Vulnerability Description

The vulnerability arises from unvalidated user input and the absence of output encoding, paving the way for Cross-site Scripting attacks by medium-privileged authenticated users in the 'Description/biography' field of a member.

Affected Systems and Versions

Team Members WordPress plugin versions prior to 5.0.4 are affected by this XSS vulnerability. Websites using these versions are at risk of exploitation by medium-privileged authenticated attackers.

Exploitation Mechanism

By leveraging the lack of input validation and output encoding, attackers with contributor-level access or higher can inject arbitrary malicious scripts or HTML into the 'Description/biography' section of a member, potentially compromising the website's security.

Mitigation and Prevention

To address CVE-2021-24128, consider the following:

Immediate Steps to Take

Update the Team Members WordPress plugin to version 5.0.4 or later to mitigate the vulnerability.
Review and sanitize user inputs to prevent Cross-site Scripting attacks.

Long-Term Security Practices

Implement strict input validation and output encoding practices in web applications to prevent XSS vulnerabilities.
Regularly monitor and audit user inputs and website content for malicious scripts or HTML.

Patching and Updates

Stay informed about security updates and patches released by the plugin vendor. Promptly apply updates to mitigate known vulnerabilities and enhance the overall security posture of your WordPress site.