CVE-2024-13556 – This CVE describes a PHP object injection vulne... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2024-13556?

CVE-2024-13556 has a CVSS score of 8.1 (HIGH). This CVE describes a PHP object injection vulnerability in the Affiliate Links WordPress plugin. Unauthenticated attackers can exploit it via file export functionality, but impact requires another plugin/theme with a POP chain present. All WordPress sites using vulnerable plugin versions are affected.

📋 TL;DR

This CVE describes a PHP object injection vulnerability in the Affiliate Links WordPress plugin. Unauthenticated attackers can exploit it via file export functionality, but impact requires another plugin/theme with a POP chain present. All WordPress sites using vulnerable plugin versions are affected.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Affiliate Links: WordPress Plugin for Link Cloaking and Link Management

Versions: All versions up to and including 3.0.1

Operating Systems: Any OS running WordPress

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Vulnerability requires WordPress installation with the Affiliate Links plugin; impact depends on presence of other plugins/themes with POP chains.

📦 What is this software?

Affiliate Links by Wecantrack

View all CVEs affecting Affiliate Links →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

If combined with a POP chain from another plugin/theme, attackers could execute arbitrary code, delete files, or steal sensitive data leading to complete site compromise.

🟠

Likely Case

Limited impact since no POP chain exists in the vulnerable plugin itself; exploitation requires specific additional vulnerable components.

🟢

If Mitigated

With proper plugin management and security controls, risk is minimal as exploitation requires specific plugin combinations.

🌐 Internet-Facing: HIGH

🏢 Internal Only: LOW

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires finding or creating a POP chain from other installed components; no known POP chain exists in the vulnerable plugin itself.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: Version after 3.0.1

Vendor Advisory: https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?sfp_email=&sfph_mail=&reponame=&old=3238736%40affiliate-links&new=3238736%40affiliate-links&sfp_email=&sfph_mail=

Restart Required: No

Instructions:

1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins. 3. Find 'Affiliate Links' plugin. 4. Click 'Update Now' if available, or manually update to latest version. 5. Verify plugin version is above 3.0.1.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable vulnerable plugin

all

Temporarily deactivate the Affiliate Links plugin until patched

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Remove or disable the Affiliate Links plugin immediately
Implement web application firewall rules to block suspicious file export requests

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check WordPress admin panel → Plugins → Affiliate Links → Version number. If version is 3.0.1 or lower, you are vulnerable.

Check Version:

wp plugin get affiliate-links --field=version

Verify Fix Applied:

After updating, verify plugin version is above 3.0.1 in WordPress admin panel.

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Unusual file export requests to the Affiliate Links plugin endpoints
PHP deserialization errors in web server logs

Network Indicators:

HTTP POST requests to /wp-content/plugins/affiliate-links/ export-related endpoints

SIEM Query:

source="web_logs" AND (uri_path="/wp-content/plugins/affiliate-links/" AND method="POST")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2024-13556

CVSS v3 Score: 8.1 (HIGH)

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

CWE: CWE-862

EPSS Score: 2.47% exploit probability (84.9th percentile)

Published: February 18, 2025

Last Updated: February 21, 2025

🔗 References

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