CVE-2024-56212: Userpro Plugin SQLi Vulnerability

CVE-2024-56212 Overview

CVE-2024-56212 is a SQL Injection vulnerability affecting the DeluxeThemes UserPro plugin for WordPress. The flaw impacts all versions up to and including 5.1.9. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-89, Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command. An authenticated attacker with low privileges can send crafted input over the network to manipulate backend database queries. Successful exploitation allows attackers to extract confidential data from the underlying database and impact application availability.

Critical Impact
An authenticated attacker can inject SQL statements to disclose sensitive database contents across the WordPress site and any connected data stores.

Affected Products

DeluxeThemes UserPro plugin for WordPress
All versions from n/a through 5.1.9
WordPress sites running UserPro membership and profile functionality

Discovery Timeline

2024-12-31 - CVE-2024-56212 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-56212

Vulnerability Analysis

The UserPro plugin fails to properly neutralize special characters supplied to SQL queries. This SQL Injection defect [CWE-89] resides in a plugin component reachable by authenticated users. The scope change indicated in the vulnerability metrics signals that exploitation affects resources beyond the vulnerable component, extending impact to the broader WordPress database and any shared data. The flaw enables confidentiality loss through direct data exfiltration and can degrade availability through resource-intensive query manipulation.

UserPro is a membership and user profile plugin used to extend WordPress account functionality. The affected input parameters accept user-supplied data that flows into database queries without sufficient sanitization or parameterization. Attackers can leverage standard SQL Injection techniques including UNION-based extraction, boolean-based blind inference, and time-based blind inference depending on the query context.

Root Cause

The root cause is the concatenation of untrusted user input into SQL statements without using prepared statements or the WordPress $wpdb->prepare() API with proper placeholders. WordPress provides safe query APIs, but the UserPro codebase in versions up to 5.1.9 incorporates raw input into query strings. This pattern allows attackers to break out of the intended query context and append arbitrary SQL clauses.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires network access to the WordPress site and low-privilege authenticated access. The attacker submits crafted parameters to a vulnerable UserPro endpoint, injecting SQL syntax that the plugin passes to the database. No user interaction is required beyond the attacker's own request. Detailed technical information is available in the Patchstack Vulnerability Report.

No public proof-of-concept exploit code has been verified for CVE-2024-56212 at the time of publication. See the vendor and Patchstack advisory for technical details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-56212

Indicators of Compromise

Unusual SQL syntax patterns in web server access logs targeting UserPro endpoints, including UNION SELECT, SLEEP(, BENCHMARK(, and INFORMATION_SCHEMA references.
Unexpected authenticated POST or GET requests to UserPro handlers containing encoded quotes, comment sequences (--, #, /*), or hex-encoded payloads.
Database error messages surfaced in HTTP responses referencing MySQL or MariaDB syntax errors.
Spikes in outbound data volume from the WordPress host after authenticated UserPro requests.

Detection Strategies

Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with SQL Injection signatures tuned to WordPress plugin endpoints.
Enable MySQL general query logging temporarily to identify anomalous queries originating from the UserPro plugin.
Correlate authenticated session activity with query patterns that read from wp_users, wp_usermeta, or wp_options outside of expected plugin workflows.

Monitoring Recommendations

Alert on repeated failed queries or syntax errors emitted by the WordPress database user.
Monitor for privilege changes and unexpected reads of the user_pass column in wp_users.
Track UserPro plugin version across all managed WordPress instances and flag any host still running 5.1.9 or earlier.

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-56212

Immediate Actions Required

Update the UserPro plugin to a version later than 5.1.9 as soon as the vendor releases a patched build.
Restrict authenticated access to UserPro functionality to trusted user roles until patching is complete.
Review WordPress user accounts for unauthorized privilege escalation or unexpected account creation.
Rotate database credentials and WordPress secret keys if exploitation is suspected.

Patch Information

Refer to the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for the current patch status and vendor guidance. Administrators should verify the installed plugin version against the fixed release and apply updates through the WordPress plugin manager.

Workarounds

Deactivate the UserPro plugin until a fixed version is installed if the plugin is not business-critical.
Apply virtual patching through a WAF rule that blocks SQL metacharacters on UserPro request parameters.
Enforce least-privilege on the WordPress database user, removing FILE, CREATE, and DROP privileges where not required.

bash

# Example WAF rule (ModSecurity) blocking SQL injection patterns on UserPro endpoints
SecRule REQUEST_URI "@contains /wp-content/plugins/userpro/" \
    "id:1056212,phase:2,deny,status:403,log,\
    msg:'Potential SQLi against UserPro (CVE-2024-56212)',\
    chain"
    SecRule ARGS "@rx (?i)(union(\s|/\*.*\*/)+select|sleep\s*\(|benchmark\s*\(|information_schema|--\s|/\*)" \
        "t:none,t:urlDecodeUni"