CVE-2024-5605 – The Media Library Assistant WordPress plugin co... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2024-5605?

CVE-2024-5605 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). The Media Library Assistant WordPress plugin contains a time-based SQL injection vulnerability in the 'order' parameter of the mla_tag_cloud shortcode. Authenticated attackers with contributor-level access or higher can exploit this to extract sensitive information from the database. All versions up to and including 3.16 are affected.

📋 TL;DR

The Media Library Assistant WordPress plugin contains a time-based SQL injection vulnerability in the 'order' parameter of the mla_tag_cloud shortcode. Authenticated attackers with contributor-level access or higher can exploit this to extract sensitive information from the database. All versions up to and including 3.16 are affected.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Media Library Assistant WordPress Plugin

Versions: All versions up to and including 3.16

Operating Systems: Any OS running WordPress

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Requires authenticated user with contributor-level access or higher

📦 What is this software?

Media Library Assistant by Davidlingren

View all CVEs affecting Media Library Assistant →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Attackers extract sensitive data including user credentials, personal information, and database contents, potentially leading to complete site compromise.

🟠

Likely Case

Attackers extract user data, plugin settings, and potentially escalate privileges through extracted credentials.

🟢

If Mitigated

With proper access controls and monitoring, impact is limited to data exposure from the WordPress database.

🌐 Internet-Facing: HIGH

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: LIKELY

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: LOW

Exploitation requires authenticated access but uses standard SQL injection techniques

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: 3.17

Vendor Advisory: https://wordpress.org/plugins/media-library-assistant/#developers

Restart Required: No

Instructions:

1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins. 3. Find Media Library Assistant. 4. Click 'Update Now' if available. 5. Alternatively, download version 3.17+ from WordPress plugin repository and manually update.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable vulnerable shortcode

all

Remove or disable the mla_tag_cloud shortcode from posts/pages

Restrict contributor access

all

Temporarily restrict contributor-level users from accessing the site

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement strict WAF rules to block SQL injection patterns
Monitor for unusual database queries from authenticated users

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check plugin version in WordPress admin under Plugins > Installed Plugins

Check Version:

wp plugin list --name='Media Library Assistant' --field=version

Verify Fix Applied:

Confirm Media Library Assistant plugin version is 3.17 or higher

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Unusual SQL queries containing 'ORDER BY' with time delays
Multiple failed login attempts followed by SQL queries

Network Indicators:

HTTP POST requests to WordPress with 'order' parameter containing SQL syntax

SIEM Query:

source="wordpress.log" AND "mla_tag_cloud" AND ("ORDER BY" OR "SLEEP" OR "BENCHMARK")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2024-5605

CVSS v3 Score: 8.8 (HIGH)

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

CWE: CWE-89

Published: June 20, 2024

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

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