CVE-2021-24922
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in the Pixel Cat WordPress plugin allows attackers to trick logged-in administrators into changing plugin settings without their consent. Attackers can inject malicious scripts that execute in administrators' browsers, potentially compromising the WordPress site. Only WordPress sites using vulnerable versions of Pixel Cat plugin are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Pixel Cat WordPress Plugin
📦 What is this software?
Pixel Cat by Fatcatapps
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Attacker gains administrative access to WordPress site, installs backdoors, steals sensitive data, or takes complete control of the website.
Likely Case
Attacker injects malicious JavaScript that steals administrator session cookies, redirects users to malicious sites, or defaces the website.
If Mitigated
With proper CSRF protection and input validation, the attack fails and no unauthorized changes occur.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires tricking a logged-in administrator to click a malicious link or visit a crafted page.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 2.6.2
Vendor Advisory: https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/399ffd65-f3c0-4fbe-a83a-2a620976aad2
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins. 3. Find Pixel Cat plugin. 4. Click 'Update Now' if available, or download version 2.6.2+ from WordPress repository. 5. Activate updated plugin.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Pixel Cat Plugin
allTemporarily disable the vulnerable plugin until patching is possible.
wp plugin deactivate pixel-cat
Implement CSRF Protection
allAdd CSRF tokens to plugin settings forms via custom code or security plugin.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict administrator access to trusted networks only.
- Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block CSRF attacks.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin → Plugins → Installed Plugins for Pixel Cat version. If version is below 2.6.2, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
wp plugin get pixel-cat --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm Pixel Cat plugin version is 2.6.2 or higher in WordPress admin panel.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual POST requests to /wp-admin/admin.php?page=pixel-cat
- Administrator account making unexpected plugin setting changes
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests with suspicious parameters to plugin settings endpoint
SIEM Query:
source="wordpress.log" AND (uri="/wp-admin/admin.php" AND query="page=pixel-cat")