Introduction: Attention all WordPress and WooCommerce users - a recently discovered vulnerability, known as CVE-2023-5703, is affecting the popular Gift Up Gift Cards plugin. This vulnerability is classified as a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) issue and has the potential to compromise the security of your website if left unchecked. In this comprehensive long read, we will delve into the details of the vulnerability, outline the exploit process, provide a useful code snippet, and offer guidance on how to patch and protect your website from this issue.

What is CVE-2023-5703?
The Gift Up Gift Cards for WordPress and WooCommerce plugin is widely used by WordPress sites for the management of gift cards and voucher functionality. Unfortunately, all versions up to and including 2.20.1 are affected by a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability. Stored XSS, also known as Persistent XSS, occurs when an application stores malicious scripts that are later executed by the end users visiting the affected page.

Exploit Details

The vulnerability lies in the plugin's 'giftup' shortcode (a small piece of code that allows users to insert dynamic content into WordPress pages). In this case, the plugin doesn't perform proper input sanitization and output escaping on user-supplied attributes, rendering it susceptible to Stored XSS attacks.

This means that authenticated attackers with contributor-level (and above) permissions can inject arbitrary web scripts into the pages. These scripts are then executed whenever an unsuspecting user accesses the injected page, opening the door for a range of potential malicious activities, such as data theft, account hijacking, and website defacement.

[giftup company="Example"]

An attacker might exploit the vulnerability by injecting a malicious payload as an attribute, such as:

[giftup company="Example" onmouseover="alert('XSS')"]

When an end user hovers over the injected content, the script will execute, and an alert box with the message 'XSS' will appear.

Original References:
- WordPress Gift Up! Gift Cards (WooCommerce Supported) Plugin
- Gift Up Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability

Mitigating CVE-2023-5703:
To protect your WordPress site from this vulnerability, it's essential to take the following steps:

1. Update the Gift Up Gift Cards plugin: The developers of the plugin have released a patched version (2.20.2) that addresses the vulnerability. It is highly recommended to update the plugin as soon as possible.

2. Restrict user permissions: As the exploit requires contributor-level permissions or higher, limiting the number of users with these permissions and issuing proper access controls can reduce the risk of exploitation.

3. Monitoring for suspicious activity: Regularly review the website's logs, comments, and monitored user activities for any anomalous activity that might indicate a security breach.

4. Implement input validation and output encoding: Implementing proper input validation and output encoding techniques can help prevent Stored XSS attacks and strengthen the overall security posture of your website.

Conclusion:
The CVE-2023-5703 vulnerability in the Gift Up Gift Cards for WordPress and WooCommerce plugin is a serious Stored XSS issue. It is essential to update your plugin to the latest version, regulate user permissions, and closely monitor user activities to keep your website secure. Stay vigilant and safe online!

Timeline

Published on: 11/07/2023 12:15:13 UTC
Last modified on: 11/14/2023 19:46:23 UTC