Question 1

What is the Pagelayer vulnerability?

Accepted Answer

What is the Pagelayer vulnerability?

The Pagelayer vulnerability (CVE-2023-6738) is a stored cross-site scripting issue affecting Pagelayer versions 1.7.8 and below. It allows users with contributor access or higher privileges to inject malicious JavaScript payloads into Pages that will execute for visitors. This could lead to session hijacking, site takeovers, data theft and more depending on the payload.

Question 2

Which Pagelayer versions are affected?

Accepted Answer

Which Pagelayer versions are affected?

Pagelayer versions 1.7.8 and below are affected. Version 1.7.9 patches the vulnerability by sanitizing input to prevent injection of unauthorized scripts into metadata fields. Users of vulnerable versions should update as soon as possible.

Question 3

What access level can exploit this?

Accepted Answer

What access level can exploit this?

The vulnerability can be exploited by users with contributor access or any higher privileged role. Contributors can edit pages and introduce malicious scripts without the permission needed to do so. Higher privileged users could do the same.

Question 4

How serious is this vulnerability?

Accepted Answer

How serious is this vulnerability?

This vulnerability is considered high severity with a CVSS base score of 5.4. It affects a very popular plugin used by over 200,000 sites and requires minimal permissions to exploit, increasing the avenues of attack. Successful exploitation can seriously impact site integrity.

Question 5

Could my site be compromised already?

Accepted Answer

Could my site be compromised already?

Quite possibly, yes. Given the publicity around this vulnerability and the lack of sophistication needed to exploit it, compromised sites are likely. Developers addressed a similar issue back in version 1.7.7, indicating this has been a problem area. Even updated sites could have backdoors.

Question 6

What are the risks if my site was compromised?

Accepted Answer

What are the risks if my site was compromised?

A compromised site could lead to many issues from phishing and spam campaigns that damage your brand to malware and redirects that would harm site visitors. Total site takeovers are also possible depending on the payload. Legal, regulatory and financial consequences could follow.

Question 7

How can I detect compromises?

Accepted Answer

How can I detect compromises?

Carefully review all posts and pages edited by contributor level users and higher for signs of malicious code injections. Also scan your site with tools designed to detect compromises, malware and backdoors. Consider having our expert team perform an assessment as well.

Question 8

Is updating enough to secure my site?

Accepted Answer

Is updating enough to secure my site?

Updating closes the specific vulnerability but your site may still be compromised. We recommend actively scanning for unwanted code even after updating. Also consider locking down the plugin, limiting contributor permissions and enabling two factor authentication as additional precautions.

Question 9

What if I can't update right now?

Accepted Answer

What if I can't update right now?

Temporarily disabling the plugin can offer some protection if updating is not currently feasible. This would result in loss of functionality however. At minimum, restrict contributor permissions as much as possible. Also change all admin and user passwords in case they were compromised already.

Question 10

Should I switch from Pagelayer after this?

Accepted Answer

Should I switch from Pagelayer after this?

The developers have addressed this vulnerability promptly. However, given the history of stored XSS issues with Pagelayer, switching providers could be prudent until more time has passed. There are several alternative page builders like Elementor to consider if the security issues continue to occur.

Pagelayer

Pagelayer Vulnerability – Authenticated(Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via meta fields – CVE-2023-6738 | WordPress Plugin Vulnerability Report

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