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WordPress is a powerhouse for content creators, but its open ecosystem sometimes introduces security risks. Today, let's dig deep into CVE-2023-46637, a vulnerability affecting the “Generate Dummy Posts” plugin by Saurav Sharma. This post breaks down the exploit, the root cause, and how attackers can leverage this missing authorization issue if proper precautions aren't taken.

What Is CVE-2023-46637?

This vulnerability is present in all versions up to and including 1.. of the Generate Dummy Posts WordPress plugin. The plugin is designed to let site admins create sample posts, mostly for testing or populating a development website.

Unfortunately, the code that lets users generate these dummy posts doesn’t check whether the person triggering the action is actually an authorized administrator. In simple terms: anyone, even users without any special permissions, could trick the site into creating new posts.

Author: Saurav Sharma

- Affected Versions: n/a → 1..

Vulnerability: Missing Authorization (Broken Access Control)

- Impact: Remote attackers can abuse endpoint to create arbitrary dummy posts without proper permissions.

Let’s look at a sample vulnerable code

// File: generate-dummy-posts.php
add_action('wp_ajax_generate_dummy_posts', 'generate_dummy_posts');

function generate_dummy_posts() {
    $num_posts = isset($_POST['num_posts']) ? intval($_POST['num_posts']) : 10;
    for ($i = ; $i < $num_posts; $i++) {
        $post_data = array(
            'post_title'    => 'Dummy Post ' . wp_rand(100,9999),
            'post_content'  => 'Content for dummy post.',
            'post_status'   => 'publish',
            'post_author'   => 1
        );
        wp_insert_post($post_data);
    }
    echo "Dummy posts generated!";
    wp_die();
}

Notice what's missing?
There is no capability check (e.g., current_user_can('manage_options')) to restrict who can execute the generate_dummy_posts function.

Craft a POST request:

If access controls aren't enforced, any logged-in user—even those with very low privileges—can send something like:

b "wordpress_logged_in_COOKIE" \

https://targetsite.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php

`

With some misconfigurations, even unauthenticated visitors might access this (see plugin routing and hooks).

Payload:

The vulnerable code generates the requested number of posts using whatever parameters the attacker provides.

How to Fix? (For Developers & Site Owners)

The fix is simple: Check the user's capability before running sensitive actions.

Patched Example

function generate_dummy_posts() {
    // Only let administrators create dummy posts
    if ( !current_user_can('manage_options') ) {
        wp_die('Unauthorized', 403);
    }
    // ... rest of code unchanged ...
}

References

- Official Plugin Page
- NVD Entry: CVE-2023-46637
- WPScan Report
- Author’s GitHub

Final Notes

CVE-2023-46637 is a classic reminder about why _authorization checks_ are vital in all user-triggered actions, especially in environments like WordPress where plugins significantly expand functionality. If you use “Generate Dummy Posts,” update or patch your installation immediately. If you build plugins yourself, always validate capabilities before performing any sensitive operation using hooks like wp_ajax_*.

Stay secure, and always check your code for access controls!

*You found this exclusive analysis here — stay tuned for more real-world WordPress security insights!*

Timeline

Published on: 01/02/2025 12:15:14 UTC