CVE-2024-10820 - WooCommerce Upload Files Plugin Arbitrary File Upload Vulnerability and Exploit

In the world of eCommerce, WooCommerce is a popular choice for building online stores using WordPress. Recently, a security vulnerability has been discovered in the WooCommerce Upload Files plugin, which allows unauthenticated users to upload arbitrary files to the affected website's server. This post aims to provide an in-depth analysis of the vulnerability, referred to as CVE-2024-10820, and explain how it can be exploited by potential attackers.

Description of Vulnerability

The core issue that gives rise to CVE-2024-10820 is the lack of proper file type validation within the upload_files() function of the plugin. As a result, unauthenticated attackers can exploit this vulnerability to upload arbitrary files to the affected website's server. In turn, this could potentially pave the way for remote code execution on the server.

Details of the Vulnerability

As mentioned earlier, the vulnerability exists in the upload_files() function of the WooCommerce Upload Files plugin for WordPress. When investigating this function, one can see that file type validation is either absent or improperly implemented.

Below is a code snippet illustrating the vulnerability

function upload_files() {
	$upload_dir = wp_upload_dir();
	$upload_path = $upload_dir['path'] . DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR;
	$status = wp_handle_upload($_FILES['file'], array('test_form' => false, 'action' => 'upload_file'));
	if ($status && !is_wp_error($status)) {
		return $status;
	}
	return false;
}

As seen in the code snippet above, the plugin uses the wp_handle_upload() function to handle file uploads, and this function does not verify the uploaded file's types. This opens the door to arbitrary file uploads by unauthenticated attackers.

Exploiting the Vulnerability

In order to exploit CVE-2024-10820, an attacker would need to send a POST request, containing the file to upload, to the vulnerable endpoint on the affected website.

Here's a sample curl command that demonstrates how an attacker could upload an arbitrary file

curl -X POST -F "file=@/path/to/your/malicious-file.php" https://www.example.com/path-to-plugin/endpoint

Exploiting this vulnerability, an attacker could successfully upload a PHP file containing malicious code. Once uploaded, the attacker could simply access that file via the affected website's URL, thereby triggering code execution on the server.

To protect your WooCommerce-enabled WordPress site from CVE-2024-10820

1. Upgrade to the latest version of the WooCommerce Upload Files plugin, as updated versions likely address this vulnerability.
2. Check your website for any unfamiliar or suspicious files, as attackers may have already exploited this vulnerability to upload malicious files.
3. Ensure you have proper logging and monitoring in place, as this can aid in detecting unauthorized file uploads.

References

1. Original discovery and reporting of the vulnerability
2. WooCommerce Upload Files Plugin Repository

Conclusion

CVE-2024-10820 demonstrates the importance of regular security updates to the software you use on your website. By keeping your WordPress plugins up-to-date and practicing good security hygiene, you can minimize your website's exposure to such vulnerabilities and their corresponding exploits.

Timeline

Published on: 11/13/2024 04:15:04 UTC
Last modified on: 11/19/2024 17:38:16 UTC