CVE-2024-8292: WP-Recall Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

CVE-2024-8292 Overview

CVE-2024-8292 is a critical privilege escalation and account takeover vulnerability affecting the WP-Recall – Registration, Profile, Commerce & More plugin for WordPress. The vulnerability exists in all versions up to and including 16.26.8, where the plugin fails to properly verify a user's identity during new order creation. This authentication bypass flaw allows unauthenticated attackers to supply arbitrary email addresses through the user_email field and subsequently update the password for that user during the order creation process.

Critical Impact

Unauthenticated attackers can take over any WordPress user account, including administrator accounts, by exploiting the flawed order creation functionality when the commerce addon is enabled.

Affected Products

• plechevandrey wp-recall versions up to and including 16.26.8
• WordPress sites with the WP-Recall commerce addon enabled
• All WordPress installations running vulnerable versions of the WP-Recall plugin

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-09-06 - CVE CVE-2024-8292 published to NVD
• 2024-09-12 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-8292

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-639 (Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key), representing a fundamental flaw in the plugin's authentication and authorization mechanisms. The WP-Recall plugin's commerce addon contains a critical weakness in its order creation workflow where user identity verification is absent.

When processing new orders, the plugin accepts a user_email parameter from user input without validating that the submitting user has authorization to act on behalf of that email address. This allows an attacker to specify any registered user's email address and subsequently modify that account's password through the order creation process.

The vulnerability requires the commerce addon to be enabled, which is a common configuration for sites using WP-Recall for e-commerce functionality. Once exploited, attackers gain complete control over targeted user accounts, including administrator accounts, enabling full site compromise.

Root Cause

The root cause of CVE-2024-8292 lies in the class-rcl-create-order.php file within the commerce addon. The order creation class fails to implement proper authorization checks to verify that the user submitting the order request is the legitimate owner of the email address provided. This Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR) pattern allows attackers to reference and modify accounts belonging to other users by simply supplying their email addresses.

The vulnerable code path spans multiple files including the order creation class, frontend functions, and core plugin functions, indicating a systemic lack of identity verification throughout the order processing workflow.

Attack Vector

The attack can be executed remotely over the network without requiring any authentication or user interaction. An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by:

1. Identifying a target WordPress site running WP-Recall with the commerce addon enabled
2. Initiating a new order creation request
3. Supplying a victim's email address in the user_email field
4. Manipulating the password update functionality during order processing
5. Using the newly set password to log in as the victim user

The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can target administrator accounts, providing attackers with complete control over the WordPress installation.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-8292

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected password reset notifications received by users without their initiation
• New orders created with unusual patterns or from unexpected IP addresses
• Unauthorized administrative actions following order creation events
• Login activity from unfamiliar IP addresses or locations for existing user accounts

Detection Strategies

• Monitor order creation endpoints for requests containing email addresses that don't match the authenticated session
• Implement logging for all password change events and correlate with order creation timestamps
• Review web server logs for unusual POST requests to the commerce addon endpoints
• Configure WordPress security plugins to alert on multiple failed login attempts followed by successful authentication

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging for the WP-Recall plugin, particularly the commerce addon functionality
• Set up alerts for account modifications that occur in conjunction with order processing
• Monitor for bulk order creation attempts that may indicate automated exploitation
• Implement real-time monitoring of user account changes, especially for accounts with elevated privileges

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-8292

Immediate Actions Required

• Update the WP-Recall plugin to a version newer than 16.26.8 immediately
• If unable to update immediately, disable the commerce addon until the patch can be applied
• Audit all user accounts for unauthorized password changes or suspicious activity
• Force password resets for all users, prioritizing administrator accounts

Patch Information

The vendor has released a patch addressing this vulnerability. The security fix is available in the WordPress WP-Recall Change Set, which implements proper user identity verification during the order creation process. Site administrators should update to the patched version through the WordPress plugin update mechanism or by manually applying the changeset.

Additional technical analysis is available from Wordfence Vulnerability Analysis.

Workarounds

• Disable the WP-Recall commerce addon if e-commerce functionality is not essential to site operations
• Implement additional authentication layers such as two-factor authentication (2FA) for all user accounts
• Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to filter malicious requests targeting the order creation endpoints
• Restrict access to order creation functionality to authenticated users only through server-level configurations

# Temporary workaround: Disable commerce addon via wp-config.php
# Add the following line to disable the commerce functionality
define('RCL_COMMERCE_DISABLED', true);

# Alternatively, rename the commerce addon directory to disable it
mv wp-content/plugins/wp-recall/add-on/commerce wp-content/plugins/wp-recall/add-on/commerce.disabled