CVE-2024-51631 Overview
CVE-2024-51631 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the Sticky Social Bar WordPress plugin developed by Md Eftakhairul Islam. The flaw affects all plugin versions up to and including 2.0. According to the Patchstack advisory, the CSRF weakness can be chained into a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) condition, allowing an attacker to persist malicious script content in the plugin configuration. Exploitation requires an authenticated administrator to visit an attacker-controlled page while logged into the WordPress site. The vulnerability is tracked under CWE-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery.
Critical Impact
A successful attack chains CSRF with stored XSS, enabling persistent script injection into the WordPress administrative interface without direct authentication by the attacker.
Affected Products
- Md Eftakhairul Islam Sticky Social Bar plugin for WordPress
- All versions from n/a through <= 2.0
- WordPress sites with the sticky-social-bar plugin activated
Discovery Timeline
- 2024-11-19 - CVE-2024-51631 published to the National Vulnerability Database
- 2026-04-23 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2024-51631
Vulnerability Analysis
The Sticky Social Bar plugin fails to validate the origin of state-changing HTTP requests submitted to its administrative endpoints. WordPress provides a nonce mechanism through wp_nonce_field() and check_admin_referer() to defend against forged requests, but the plugin does not enforce nonce verification on the affected handlers. As a result, an attacker can craft an HTML form or JavaScript payload that, when loaded by an authenticated administrator, submits a request to the vulnerable endpoint and modifies plugin settings.
Because the plugin also stores input without proper output encoding, the forged request can inject script content that executes whenever an administrator views the affected page. This converts the CSRF primitive into a stored XSS condition, broadening the impact from a single-action forgery to persistent code execution in the WordPress dashboard context.
Root Cause
The root cause is the absence of CSRF token validation on plugin settings handlers, combined with insufficient sanitization of stored values. Both defenses are part of standard WordPress plugin security guidance and were not implemented in versions up to 2.0.
Attack Vector
The attack vector is network-based and requires user interaction. The attacker hosts a page containing a hidden form that targets the vulnerable plugin endpoint on the victim's WordPress site. An administrator with an active session who visits the attacker page triggers the forged request automatically. The scope is changed because injected scripts execute in the WordPress admin origin, affecting users beyond the directly targeted administrator.
No verified proof-of-concept code is published. Technical details are available in the Patchstack Vulnerability Report.
Detection Methods for CVE-2024-51631
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected modifications to Sticky Social Bar plugin settings, especially fields containing HTML or <script> tags
- WordPress administrator sessions generating outbound requests to admin.php or options.php endpoints immediately after visiting external sites
- Stored plugin configuration values containing JavaScript event handlers such as onerror=, onload=, or javascript: URIs
Detection Strategies
- Review the WordPress wp_options table for entries associated with the sticky-social-bar plugin and inspect them for script content
- Monitor HTTP referrer headers on plugin administrative POST requests for off-domain origins
- Enable WordPress audit logging to track settings changes by administrator accounts and correlate them with browsing activity
Monitoring Recommendations
- Deploy a web application firewall rule that flags POST requests to plugin admin handlers lacking a valid _wpnonce parameter
- Alert on administrator account activity that modifies plugin options outside of normal change windows
- Capture browser-side telemetry to identify script execution originating from the WordPress admin interface
How to Mitigate CVE-2024-51631
Immediate Actions Required
- Deactivate and remove the Sticky Social Bar plugin until a patched version is confirmed available from the vendor
- Review existing plugin settings for any injected HTML or JavaScript and remove malicious content
- Force administrator session invalidation and require password rotation if compromise is suspected
Patch Information
As of the latest NVD update on 2026-04-23, the advisory lists affected versions through <= 2.0 and does not identify a fixed release. Administrators should consult the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for current remediation status and replace the plugin with a maintained alternative if no patch is published.
Workarounds
- Restrict WordPress administrator access to dedicated browsers or sessions not used for general web browsing
- Apply a web application firewall ruleset that enforces nonce validation on plugin administrative requests
- Use the principle of least privilege by limiting accounts with manage_options capability
# Disable the Sticky Social Bar plugin via WP-CLI
wp plugin deactivate sticky-social-bar
wp plugin delete sticky-social-bar
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
