CVE-2024-24701: Tiny Setka Workflow CSRF Vulnerability

CVE-2024-24701 Overview

CVE-2024-24701 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability affecting the Setka Editor WordPress plugin by Native Grid LLC. The plugin, marketed as a no-code page builder for performance-based content, contains missing or insufficient anti-CSRF token validation on privileged actions. All versions up to and including 2.1.20 are affected. An attacker can trick an authenticated administrator into visiting a crafted page, which then submits state-changing requests to the vulnerable WordPress site. The flaw is tracked under CWE-352 and is documented in the Patchstack CSRF Vulnerability Report.

Critical Impact
Successful exploitation lets an attacker perform administrator-level actions on the target WordPress site, leading to full compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Affected Products

Setka Editor WordPress plugin (tiny:setka_workflow) versions up to and including 2.1.20
WordPress installations that have the Setka Editor plugin activated
Sites where administrators can be socially engineered into visiting attacker-controlled pages

Discovery Timeline

2024-02-29 - CVE-2024-24701 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-24701

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability stems from missing Cross-Site Request Forgery protections on one or more privileged endpoints exposed by the Setka Editor plugin. WordPress plugins are expected to protect state-changing requests with a nonce validated via check_admin_referer() or wp_verify_nonce(). When these checks are absent or improperly implemented, any authenticated session can be abused by a third-party origin.

An attacker hosts a malicious page containing an auto-submitting HTML form or JavaScript request targeting the vulnerable plugin endpoint. When an authenticated administrator visits the page, the browser attaches the WordPress session cookie to the forged request. The server executes the action as though the administrator initiated it. Because the exploit requires user interaction but no attacker credentials, it is well suited to phishing and watering-hole delivery.

Root Cause

The root cause is [CWE-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery]. The plugin fails to require and validate an unpredictable per-request token on sensitive actions, so the server cannot distinguish requests intentionally issued from the WordPress admin interface from requests forged by an external origin.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires user interaction. An attacker crafts a web page or email that triggers a forged HTTP request to the target WordPress site. If a logged-in administrator loads the attacker's content, the malicious request executes with administrator privileges. Successful exploitation can modify plugin data, alter site content, or chain with other weaknesses to escalate to code execution.

No verified public proof-of-concept code is available. See the Patchstack advisory for additional technical context.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-24701

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected changes to Setka Editor configuration, templates, or stored content authored by administrator accounts
HTTP POST requests to Setka Editor admin endpoints with Referer headers pointing to external, unrelated domains
Administrator activity from IP addresses or user agents that do not match normal login sessions

Detection Strategies

Inspect WordPress access logs for state-changing requests to wp-admin paths associated with the Setka Editor plugin that lack a valid _wpnonce parameter
Correlate authenticated admin actions with recent outbound browsing to untrusted domains from administrator workstations
Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to alert on cross-origin POST requests to plugin endpoints

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable WordPress audit logging to capture plugin configuration changes and content modifications with timestamps and originating IPs
Alert on installation of new plugins, themes, or administrator accounts outside of scheduled change windows
Monitor administrator endpoints for phishing and web-based social engineering activity that could deliver the forged request

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-24701

Immediate Actions Required

Update the Setka Editor plugin to a version later than 2.1.20 as soon as the vendor publishes a fixed release
Audit administrator accounts and recent plugin configuration changes for signs of forged requests
Restrict WordPress administrator access to dedicated browsers or workstations that do not browse arbitrary web content

Patch Information

The Patchstack advisory tracks vendor remediation status. Administrators should apply the vendor-provided update once available and verify that all Setka Editor admin actions require a valid WordPress nonce.

Workarounds

Deactivate the Setka Editor plugin until a patched version is installed if the plugin is not business-critical
Deploy a WAF rule that blocks POST requests to Setka Editor endpoints when the Referer or Origin header does not match the site domain
Require administrators to log out of WordPress when not actively using the admin panel to shorten the window for CSRF abuse
Enforce SameSite=Lax or SameSite=Strict on WordPress authentication cookies to reduce cross-site request risk

bash

# Example NGINX rule to block cross-origin POSTs to Setka Editor admin endpoints
location ~ ^/wp-admin/admin(-ajax|-post)\.php$ {
    if ($request_method = POST) {
        set $csrf_block "";
        if ($http_origin !~* "^https?://(www\.)?example\.com$") { set $csrf_block "1"; }
        if ($arg_action ~* "setka") { set $csrf_block "${csrf_block}1"; }
        if ($csrf_block = "11") { return 403; }
    }
}