CVE-2024-8275
📋 TL;DR
This SQL injection vulnerability in The Events Calendar WordPress plugin allows unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary SQL queries through the 'order' parameter of the 'tribe_has_next_event' function. Only WordPress sites using this plugin with custom code that manually calls the vulnerable function are affected. Attackers can extract sensitive database information including user credentials and site data.
💻 Affected Systems
- The Events Calendar WordPress plugin
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete database compromise leading to credential theft, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, and potential site takeover.
Likely Case
Extraction of sensitive information like user credentials, personal data, and site configuration from the database.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if proper input validation and prepared statements are implemented, or if the vulnerable function isn't used.
🎯 Exploit Status
SQL injection via user-controlled parameter with no authentication required. Exploitation is straightforward for attackers familiar with SQL injection techniques.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 6.6.5 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://theeventscalendar.com/knowledgebase/customizing-template-files-2-legacy/
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel
2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins
3. Find The Events Calendar plugin
4. Click 'Update Now' if available
5. Alternatively, download version 6.6.5+ from WordPress.org and manually update
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Remove custom tribe_has_next_event() calls
allRemove or disable any custom code that calls the vulnerable tribe_has_next_event() function
Review theme files and custom plugins for tribe_has_next_event() calls and remove them
Input validation wrapper
allAdd input validation to sanitize the 'order' parameter before passing to tribe_has_next_event()
Add parameter sanitization: $order = sanitize_sql_orderby($_GET['order']);
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block SQL injection patterns
- Restrict database user permissions to minimum required access
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if custom code calls tribe_has_next_event() function and if plugin version is ≤6.6.4Check Version:
wp plugin get the-events-calendar --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify plugin version is 6.6.5+ and review code for proper parameter escaping in SQL queries📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual SQL query patterns in database logs
- Multiple failed SQL queries with injection attempts
- Requests with SQL keywords in 'order' parameter
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests containing SQL injection payloads in query parameters
- Unusual database connection patterns from web server
SIEM Query:
SELECT * FROM web_logs WHERE url_query LIKE '%UNION%SELECT%' OR url_query LIKE '%ORDER%BY%' AND url_query LIKE '%tribe_has_next_event%'🔗 References
- https://docs.theeventscalendar.com/reference/functions/tribe_has_next_event/
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?sfp_email=&sfph_mail=&reponame=&old=3152853%40the-events-calendar&new=3152853%40the-events-calendar&sfp_email=&sfph_mail=#file18
- https://theeventscalendar.com/knowledgebase/customizing-template-files-2-legacy/
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/f59891c7-db1a-4688-8616-8877d7d7960d?source=cve
