CVE-2023-5713: system dashboard vulnerability

What is known

The System Dashboard plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access of data due to a missing capability check on the sd_option_value() function hooked via an AJAX action in all versions up to, and including, 2.8.7. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level access and above, to retrieve potentially sensitive option values, and deserialize the content of those values.

Business impact

Successful exploitation of CVE-2023-5713, a medium vulnerability (CVSS 4.3) affecting system dashboard, may affect the confidentiality, integrity or availability of the vulnerable environment. The exact impact depends on the installed version, exposed interfaces and deployment configuration.

Recommended administrator action

Confirm whether system dashboard is present and compare installed versions with the vendor advisory and NVD record. Apply the vendor patch or documented mitigation; until remediation is complete, reduce exposure of affected interfaces, review relevant logs and monitor for indicators of exploitation. DataHouse can support version verification, managed patching, network exposure reduction, log review and backup validation for dedicated, cloud and colocated environments.

Sources

• NVD
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