CVE-2023-35045
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2023-35045 is a missing authorization vulnerability in the Fat Rat Collect WordPress plugin that allows unauthorized users to access functionality intended only for authenticated users. This affects all versions up to 2.6.7. WordPress sites using this vulnerable plugin are at risk.
💻 Affected Systems
- Fat Rat Collect WordPress Plugin
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Unauthorized users could access sensitive plugin functionality, potentially modifying settings, accessing collected data, or performing administrative actions within the plugin's scope.
Likely Case
Unauthorized users accessing plugin features they shouldn't have access to, potentially viewing or modifying collected data.
If Mitigated
With proper access controls and authentication checks, impact would be minimal as only authorized users could access plugin functionality.
🎯 Exploit Status
Missing authorization vulnerabilities typically require minimal technical skill to exploit once the vulnerable endpoint is identified.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 2.6.8 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://patchstack.com/database/vulnerability/fat-rat-collect/wordpress-fat-rat-collect-plugin-2-6-1-broken-access-control-vulnerability
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel
2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
3. Find Fat Rat Collect plugin
4. Click 'Update Now' if update available
5. If no update available, download version 2.6.8+ from WordPress repository
6. Deactivate old version, upload new version, activate
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Plugin
allTemporarily disable the vulnerable plugin until patched
wp plugin deactivate fat-rat-collect
Restrict Access via Web Server
linuxBlock access to plugin directories via web server configuration
# In Apache .htaccess:
<FilesMatch "\.(php|inc)$">
Order Deny,Allow
Deny from all
</FilesMatch>
# In Nginx config:
location ~* /wp-content/plugins/fat-rat-collect/.*\.php$ {
deny all;
}
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Remove the Fat Rat Collect plugin entirely from production systems
- Implement network-level access controls to restrict who can access the WordPress admin interface
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin panel > Plugins > Installed Plugins for Fat Rat Collect version. If version is 2.6.7 or lower, you are vulnerable.Check Version:
wp plugin list --name=fat-rat-collect --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
After updating, verify Fat Rat Collect plugin version is 2.6.8 or higher in WordPress admin panel.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unauthorized access attempts to plugin-specific endpoints
- 403/401 errors followed by 200 success to same endpoints
- Unusual user activity from unauthenticated IPs
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests to /wp-content/plugins/fat-rat-collect/ from unauthenticated users
- POST/GET requests to plugin admin endpoints without authentication cookies
SIEM Query:
source="web_server" AND (uri="*fat-rat-collect*" OR user_agent="*fat-rat-collect*") AND (response_code=200) AND (user="-" OR auth="-")