CVE-2021-38324 – This vulnerability allows attackers to perform ... (How to Fix)

📋 TL;DR

This vulnerability allows attackers to perform SQL injection attacks on WordPress sites using the SP Rental Manager plugin. By manipulating the orderby parameter, attackers can extract sensitive data from the database. Sites running plugin versions 1.5.3 or earlier are affected.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

SP Rental Manager WordPress Plugin

Versions: Up to and including 1.5.3

Operating Systems: All

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Affects all WordPress installations using vulnerable plugin versions

📦 What is this software?

Sp Rental Manager by Smartypantsplugins

View all CVEs affecting Sp Rental Manager →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Complete database compromise leading to data theft, privilege escalation, or site takeover

🟠

Likely Case

Extraction of sensitive user data, configuration information, or authentication credentials

🟢

If Mitigated

Limited information disclosure if database permissions are properly restricted

🌐 Internet-Facing: HIGH

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ⚠️ Yes

Weaponized: LIKELY

Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes

Complexity: LOW

SQL injection via orderby parameter requires minimal technical skill

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: 1.5.4 or later

Vendor Advisory: https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset/2604788/sp-rental-manager/trunk/user/shortcodes.php

Restart Required: No

Instructions:

1. Log into WordPress admin panel
2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
3. Find SP Rental Manager
4. Click 'Update Now' if available
5. If no update appears, manually download version 1.5.4+ from WordPress repository
6. Deactivate old plugin, upload new version, activate

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Web Application Firewall (WAF)

all

Implement WAF rules to block SQL injection attempts

Plugin Deactivation

linux

Temporarily disable the SP Rental Manager plugin

wp plugin deactivate sp-rental-manager

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement strict input validation and parameterized queries
Restrict database user permissions to minimum required

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check WordPress admin panel > Plugins > SP Rental Manager version number

Check Version:

wp plugin get sp-rental-manager --field=version

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify plugin version is 1.5.4 or higher and review shortcodes.php line 389 for proper sanitization

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Unusual SQL queries in database logs
Multiple failed parameter manipulation attempts

Network Indicators:

HTTP requests with SQL syntax in orderby parameter

SIEM Query:

source="web_logs" AND (orderby CONTAINS "UNION" OR orderby CONTAINS "SELECT" OR orderby CONTAINS "--")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2021-38324

CVSS v3 Score: 8.2 (HIGH)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:L

CWE: CWE-89

Published: September 9, 2021

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/sp-rental-manager/tags/1.5.3/user/shortcodes.php#L389 Exploit,Third Party Advisory
https://www.wordfence.com/vulnerability-advisories/#CVE-2021-38324 Exploit,Third Party Advisory
https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/sp-rental-manager/tags/1.5.3/user/shortcodes.php#L389 Exploit,Third Party Advisory
https://www.wordfence.com/vulnerability-advisories/#CVE-2021-38324 Exploit,Third Party Advisory

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🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

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