CVE-2024-51648 Overview
CVE-2024-51648 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the hands01 e-shops-cart2 WordPress plugin that leads to Reflected Cross-Site Scripting (XSS). The flaw affects all versions of the plugin up to and including 1.0.3. An attacker can craft a malicious request that, when triggered by an authenticated user, reflects attacker-controlled script into the browser response. The issue is tracked under CWE-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery and was disclosed through Patchstack.
Critical Impact
Successful exploitation executes arbitrary JavaScript in the victim's browser session, enabling session theft, administrative action hijacking, and content manipulation on affected WordPress sites.
Affected Products
- hands01 e-shops-cart2 WordPress plugin versions through 1.0.3
- WordPress sites with the e-shops plugin installed and active
- Any WordPress administrator or privileged user session interacting with a malicious link
Discovery Timeline
- 2024-11-19 - CVE-2024-51648 published to the National Vulnerability Database
- 2026-04-23 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2024-51648
Vulnerability Analysis
The vulnerability chains two distinct weaknesses. The e-shops-cart2 plugin fails to validate CSRF tokens on a request handler that reflects user-controlled input into HTTP responses without proper output encoding. Because the request lacks anti-CSRF protections, an attacker can forge the request from any external origin. Because the response reflects unsanitized input, the forged request returns attacker-controlled JavaScript inside the victim's authenticated session context.
The attack requires user interaction. A victim must click a crafted link or visit a page hosting the attack payload while authenticated to the target WordPress site. The scope is changed because injected script runs in the WordPress origin and can access cookies, the admin DOM, and authenticated REST endpoints.
Root Cause
The root cause is the absence of CSRF nonce verification on a plugin endpoint that reflects request parameters into rendered output. WordPress provides wp_nonce_field() and check_admin_referer() primitives for CSRF mitigation, but the affected handler does not invoke them. The handler additionally fails to apply contextual output encoding through helpers such as esc_html(), esc_attr(), or esc_js() before emitting the parameter into the page.
Attack Vector
An attacker hosts a page containing a hidden form or image tag that issues a request to the vulnerable plugin endpoint on a target WordPress site. The request carries a malicious payload in a reflected parameter. When an authenticated administrator visits the attacker's page, the browser submits the cross-origin request with the user's session cookies. The plugin processes the request and reflects the payload into the response, executing JavaScript in the WordPress origin. Refer to the Patchstack advisory for parameter-level details.
Detection Methods for CVE-2024-51648
Indicators of Compromise
- Web server access logs showing requests to e-shops-cart2 plugin endpoints with <script>, javascript:, or HTML entity-encoded payloads in query parameters
- Referer headers pointing to external domains immediately preceding requests to plugin endpoints used by administrators
- Unexpected creation of WordPress users, modified plugin or theme files, or new scheduled tasks following administrator browsing activity
Detection Strategies
- Inspect HTTP request parameters for the e-shops-cart2 plugin against patterns containing script tags, event handlers (onerror=, onload=), or javascript: URIs
- Correlate cross-origin Referer headers with authenticated WordPress sessions to identify CSRF attempts
- Monitor browser-rendered responses for reflected input that bypasses standard sanitization filters
Monitoring Recommendations
- Enable WordPress audit logging plugins to record administrative actions and parameter values for plugin endpoints
- Configure a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with rulesets covering CWE-352 CSRF and CWE-79 reflected XSS patterns
- Alert on outbound traffic from administrator browsers to known malicious or newly registered domains shortly before sensitive WordPress actions
How to Mitigate CVE-2024-51648
Immediate Actions Required
- Deactivate and remove the e-shops-cart2 plugin until a patched version higher than 1.0.3 is available from the vendor
- Force a password reset and session invalidation for all WordPress administrator accounts that may have interacted with untrusted links
- Review WordPress user lists, scheduled tasks, and recently modified files for signs of post-exploitation activity
Patch Information
No vendor-confirmed patch version is listed in the available references at the time of writing. Monitor the Patchstack advisory and the official WordPress plugin repository for an updated release that exceeds 1.0.3 and includes nonce verification plus output encoding.
Workarounds
- Restrict access to WordPress administrative paths using IP allowlisting at the web server or WAF layer
- Deploy a WAF rule that blocks requests to e-shops-cart2 endpoints containing reflected script content or originating from external Referers
- Train administrators to avoid clicking untrusted links while authenticated to WordPress and to use a dedicated browser profile for site administration
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
