CVE-2024-39658: Salon Booking System SQL Injection Flaw

CVE-2024-39658 Overview

CVE-2024-39658 is an authenticated SQL Injection vulnerability in the Salon Booking System WordPress plugin. The flaw affects all versions from initial release through version 10.7. An attacker with high-privilege access can inject SQL statements through unsanitized input into database queries. Successful exploitation allows the attacker to read, modify, or delete data in the underlying WordPress database. The issue is classified under CWE-89: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command.

Critical Impact
Authenticated attackers can extract sensitive data, tamper with booking records, and compromise database integrity through crafted SQL payloads.

Affected Products

Salon Booking System WordPress plugin versions up to and including 10.7
WordPress sites running the vulnerable salon_booking_system plugin
Deployments where the plugin is exposed to authenticated users with elevated privileges

Discovery Timeline

2024-08-29 - CVE-2024-39658 published to the National Vulnerability Database
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-39658

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in the Salon Booking System plugin's handling of user-supplied parameters that flow into SQL queries. The plugin fails to properly neutralize special characters before concatenating input into database statements. An authenticated attacker submits crafted values that break out of the intended query context and append arbitrary SQL clauses.

Because the vulnerability requires high-privilege authentication, exploitation is limited to users who already possess elevated plugin permissions. However, once exploited, the attacker gains full read and write access to the WordPress database, including user credentials, session tokens, and customer booking data.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing parameterization and inadequate input sanitization in one or more query paths within the plugin. The plugin concatenates request parameters directly into SQL statements rather than using prepared statements with the WordPress $wpdb->prepare() API. This design defect allows special SQL metacharacters to alter query semantics.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires authentication. The attacker sends HTTP requests to a vulnerable plugin endpoint containing malicious SQL fragments in parameters processed by the plugin. Refer to the Patchstack SQL Injection Report for endpoint-specific technical details.

No public proof-of-concept exploit is currently available, and the vulnerability is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-39658

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected SQL syntax such as UNION SELECT, SLEEP(, or information_schema references in web server access logs targeting /wp-admin/ or plugin AJAX endpoints
Anomalous outbound queries from the WordPress database process to wp_users, wp_usermeta, or plugin-specific tables
Authenticated plugin requests containing URL-encoded SQL metacharacters (%27, %22, --, %23) in query or POST parameters
Newly created administrator accounts or modified user roles that do not match legitimate operator activity

Detection Strategies

Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with SQL injection signatures tuned for WordPress plugin traffic
Enable MySQL general query logging temporarily to identify malformed or suspicious queries originating from the plugin
Correlate authenticated session activity with query patterns to detect privileged accounts issuing abnormal database requests
Baseline plugin endpoint request patterns and alert on deviations in parameter length, character composition, or response size

Monitoring Recommendations

Monitor WordPress audit logs for privilege changes, plugin configuration edits, and administrative logins from unusual IP addresses
Track HTTP 500 and 200 responses of unusual size returned from Salon Booking System endpoints, which may indicate error-based or blind SQLi probing
Alert on repeated authenticated requests to the same plugin endpoint within short intervals, suggesting time-based blind injection attempts

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-39658

Immediate Actions Required

Update the Salon Booking System plugin to a version later than 10.7 as soon as the vendor releases a patched release
Audit all WordPress accounts with elevated privileges and remove or disable inactive administrator and shop-manager accounts
Rotate WordPress database credentials and administrator passwords if compromise is suspected
Review database contents for unauthorized modifications to user, booking, and payment tables

Patch Information

Consult the Patchstack SQL Injection Report for the latest patched version information. Apply updates through the WordPress plugin management console once a fixed release is available from the vendor.

Workarounds

Restrict access to the WordPress admin area using IP allowlisting at the web server or reverse proxy layer
Enforce multi-factor authentication for all high-privilege WordPress accounts to reduce the attacker population
Deploy a WAF ruleset that blocks SQL injection payloads targeting plugin endpoints until the plugin is patched
Disable the Salon Booking System plugin if it is not actively used in production

bash

# Example WAF rule to block common SQLi patterns on plugin endpoints
SecRule REQUEST_URI "@contains /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php" \
  "chain,deny,status:403,id:1039658,msg:'Salon Booking System SQLi attempt'"
  SecRule ARGS "@rx (?i)(union[\s/*]+select|information_schema|sleep\s*\(|benchmark\s*\()"