CVE-2024-54358: 3D Avatar User Profile XSS Vulnerability

CVE-2024-54358 Overview

CVE-2024-54358 is a reflected Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Enrico Cantori 3D Avatar User Profile plugin for WordPress. The flaw affects all versions of the 3d-avatar-user-profile plugin up to and including 1.0.0. It results from improper neutralization of input during web page generation [CWE-79]. An attacker can craft a malicious URL that, when clicked by a victim, executes attacker-controlled JavaScript in the victim's browser session. Because the issue carries a scope change, code executes in a context broader than the vulnerable component, increasing risk to authenticated users and site administrators.

Critical Impact

Successful exploitation enables session hijacking, credential theft, and unauthorized actions performed in the context of the targeted WordPress user, including potential administrative compromise.

Affected Products

• Enrico Cantori 3D Avatar User Profile WordPress plugin (3d-avatar-user-profile)
• All versions from n/a through 1.0.0
• WordPress sites with the plugin installed and active

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-12-16 - CVE-2024-54358 published to NVD
• 2026-04-23 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-54358

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a reflected XSS issue in the 3d-avatar-user-profile WordPress plugin. The plugin fails to properly sanitize and encode user-controlled input before reflecting it back into the rendered HTML response. An attacker delivers a crafted link containing JavaScript payloads in request parameters. When a victim loads the link, the browser parses the unescaped payload as part of the page, executing the attacker's script in the WordPress origin.

The vulnerability requires user interaction, but no authentication is needed to launch the attack. The scope change in the CVSS vector indicates that exploitation affects resources beyond the vulnerable component, typically the broader WordPress session and DOM context.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing output encoding and input sanitization in the plugin's request handling logic. User-supplied parameters are concatenated into HTML output without applying WordPress functions such as esc_html(), esc_attr(), or wp_kses(). This allows angle brackets, quotes, and event handler attributes to break out of the intended context and inject executable script.

Attack Vector

Exploitation occurs over the network through a crafted HTTP request. The attacker distributes a malicious link via phishing email, chat, or a third-party site. When an authenticated WordPress user clicks the link, the reflected payload executes in their browser. The script can read cookies not marked HttpOnly, exfiltrate nonce tokens, perform CSRF-style actions against the WordPress REST API, or pivot to administrative functions if the victim holds elevated privileges. See the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for additional context.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-54358

Indicators of Compromise

• HTTP requests to URLs containing the 3d-avatar-user-profile plugin path with encoded <script>, javascript:, or onerror= payloads in query parameters.
• Web server access logs showing unusual referrers or repeated requests with reflected parameter values containing HTML special characters.
• Unexpected outbound requests from administrator browser sessions to attacker-controlled domains shortly after clicking external links.

Detection Strategies

• Inspect WordPress access logs for query strings containing URL-encoded script tags, event handlers, or document.cookie references targeting plugin endpoints.
• Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule set that flags reflected XSS patterns against the plugin's request parameters.
• Monitor for browser-side Content Security Policy (CSP) violation reports originating from WordPress administrative pages.

Monitoring Recommendations

• Centralize WordPress and reverse-proxy logs and alert on parameter values matching XSS signatures.
• Track administrator authentication anomalies and session token reuse from unexpected IP addresses.
• Audit installed plugins regularly and flag any abandoned or unmaintained plugins such as those without recent updates.

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-54358

Immediate Actions Required

• Deactivate and remove the 3d-avatar-user-profile plugin from all WordPress installations until a patched version is released.
• Force a password reset and session invalidation for administrative users who may have clicked suspicious links.
• Apply a WAF rule blocking requests containing script payloads in parameters handled by the plugin.

Patch Information

No official patched release has been published at the time of writing. The vulnerability affects all versions through 1.0.0. Monitor the Patchstack advisory and the plugin's WordPress.org page for an updated fix.

Workarounds

• Uninstall the plugin and replace it with an actively maintained alternative for avatar functionality.
• Enforce a strict Content Security Policy that disallows inline script execution on WordPress pages.
• Set the HttpOnly and SameSite=Strict flags on WordPress authentication cookies to limit token theft via injected scripts.

# Remove the vulnerable plugin via WP-CLI
wp plugin deactivate 3d-avatar-user-profile
wp plugin uninstall 3d-avatar-user-profile