CVE-2024-53783 Overview
CVE-2024-53783 is a SQL Injection vulnerability [CWE-89] affecting the Anzar Ahmed Ni WooCommerce Cost Of Goods plugin for WordPress. The flaw stems from improper neutralization of special elements used in SQL commands. It affects all versions of the plugin up to and including 3.2.8. An authenticated attacker with high privileges can inject arbitrary SQL statements through vulnerable plugin inputs. Successful exploitation can disclose sensitive database contents and impact availability of the WooCommerce store backend.
Critical Impact
An attacker with high-privilege authentication can execute arbitrary SQL queries against the WordPress database, resulting in confidentiality loss and partial availability impact across the WooCommerce environment.
Affected Products
- Anzar Ahmed Ni WooCommerce Cost Of Goods plugin (ni-woocommerce-cost-of-goods)
- All versions from n/a through <= 3.2.8
- WordPress installations running WooCommerce with the affected plugin enabled
Discovery Timeline
- 2024-11-30 - CVE-2024-53783 published to NVD
- 2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2024-53783
Vulnerability Analysis
The vulnerability resides in the Ni WooCommerce Cost Of Goods plugin, which extends WooCommerce with cost tracking features. The plugin fails to properly sanitize or parameterize user-supplied input before incorporating it into SQL queries. This allows an authenticated user with administrative-level privileges to manipulate query logic. Because the flaw impacts the underlying WordPress database, the scope extends beyond the plugin itself to other data managed by the same database. Reported impacts include high confidentiality loss and low availability impact, with no direct integrity impact recorded. The Exploit Prediction Scoring System places this issue in a moderate range for near-term exploitation likelihood.
Root Cause
The root cause is improper neutralization of special elements in SQL commands [CWE-89]. Plugin code paths concatenate untrusted input into SQL statements without using prepared statements or WordPress's $wpdb->prepare() API. Special characters such as single quotes, comments, and stacked query delimiters are not escaped or validated before execution.
Attack Vector
Exploitation requires network access to the WordPress admin surface and authenticated access at a high privilege level. No user interaction is needed. An attacker submits crafted parameters to a vulnerable plugin endpoint. The injected SQL is executed in the context of the WordPress database user, which typically has full read and write access to all WordPress and WooCommerce tables. See the Patchstack advisory for Ni WooCommerce Cost Of Goods for additional technical details.
No verified public exploit code is available. The vulnerability mechanism is described in prose only.
Detection Methods for CVE-2024-53783
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected outbound requests originating from the WordPress host referencing database contents such as wp_users or wp_options.
- Web server access logs showing admin-authenticated requests to ni-woocommerce-cost-of-goods endpoints containing SQL metacharacters (', --, UNION, SLEEP().
- Anomalous query patterns or long-running queries in MySQL slow query logs referencing plugin-related tables.
Detection Strategies
- Enable WordPress database query logging and inspect statements originating from plugin file paths under wp-content/plugins/ni-woocommerce-cost-of-goods/.
- Deploy a web application firewall (WAF) with SQL injection signatures tuned for authenticated WordPress admin traffic.
- Correlate admin session activity with database errors returned in HTTP responses to identify probing attempts.
Monitoring Recommendations
- Monitor administrator account logins for unusual source IPs, session times, or geolocations.
- Alert on newly created WordPress users with elevated roles created outside of change windows.
- Track file integrity of plugin directories and the wp-config.php file for unauthorized modification.
How to Mitigate CVE-2024-53783
Immediate Actions Required
- Identify all WordPress installations running the Ni WooCommerce Cost Of Goods plugin and record installed versions.
- Restrict WordPress administrative access to trusted networks or enforce multi-factor authentication for high-privilege accounts.
- Deploy WAF rules to block SQL metacharacter patterns targeting the plugin's request parameters until a patch is applied.
Patch Information
At the time of publication, the vendor advisory referenced by Patchstack indicates the vulnerability affects versions through 3.2.8. Review the Patchstack vulnerability entry for the latest fixed version and upgrade path. Apply the vendor-supplied update as soon as it is validated in a staging environment.
Workarounds
- Deactivate and remove the Ni WooCommerce Cost Of Goods plugin until a fixed version is installed.
- Reduce the number of accounts holding administrator or shop_manager privileges to the minimum required.
- Enforce least privilege on the database user configured in wp-config.php, limiting rights to the WordPress schema only.
# Configuration example: disable the vulnerable plugin via WP-CLI
wp plugin deactivate ni-woocommerce-cost-of-goods
wp plugin delete ni-woocommerce-cost-of-goods
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
