CVE-2024-13846
📋 TL;DR
The Indeed Ultimate Learning Pro WordPress plugin contains a time-based SQL injection vulnerability in the 'post_id' parameter. This allows authenticated attackers with Administrator privileges to execute arbitrary SQL queries and extract sensitive database information. All WordPress sites using this plugin up to version 3.9 are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Indeed Ultimate Learning Pro WordPress Plugin
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Administrator-level attacker extracts all sensitive database content including user credentials, personal data, and configuration secrets, potentially leading to complete site compromise.
Likely Case
Privileged insider or compromised admin account extracts specific sensitive data from the database for information gathering or lateral movement.
If Mitigated
With proper access controls and monitoring, exploitation is detected before significant data exfiltration occurs.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires administrator credentials. SQL injection is time-based, making it slower but still effective for data extraction.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Version 4.0 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://codecanyon.net/item/ultimate-learning-pro-wordpress-plugin/21772657
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins. 3. Find 'Indeed Ultimate Learning Pro'. 4. Click 'Update Now' if update is available. 5. If no update appears, download version 4.0+ from CodeCanyon and manually update.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Temporary Plugin Deactivation
allDisable the vulnerable plugin until patched
wp plugin deactivate ultimate-learning-pro
Web Application Firewall Rule
allBlock SQL injection patterns targeting the post_id parameter
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict administrator accounts to only trusted personnel and implement multi-factor authentication
- Implement database monitoring to detect unusual SQL query patterns and time-based delays
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin → Plugins → Indeed Ultimate Learning Pro version. If version is 3.9 or lower, you are vulnerable.Check Version:
wp plugin get ultimate-learning-pro --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify plugin version is 4.0 or higher after update. Test the affected functionality to ensure no SQL errors occur.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusually long response times on requests containing post_id parameter
- SQL syntax errors in WordPress debug logs
- Multiple failed login attempts followed by successful admin login
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests with SQL injection patterns in post_id parameter
- Unusual database query patterns from WordPress application
SIEM Query:
source="wordpress.log" AND ("post_id" AND (SLEEP OR WAITFOR OR BENCHMARK) OR "SQL syntax")