CVE-2024-10781
Published: 26 November 2024
Summary
CVE-2024-10781 is a high-severity Improper Check or Handling of Exceptional Conditions (CWE-703) vulnerability in Cleantalk Spam Protection\, Antispam\, Firewall. Its CVSS base score is 8.1 (High).
Operationally, ranked in the top 14.3% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
Deeper analysis
The Spam protection, Anti-Spam, FireWall by CleanTalk plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized arbitrary plugin installation in all versions through 6.44. The flaw stems from a missing empty-value check on the api_key parameter inside the perform function, allowing the plugin to process remote calls without proper validation.
Unauthenticated attackers can exploit the issue over the network to install and activate arbitrary WordPress plugins. Successful exploitation can be chained with other vulnerable plugins to obtain remote code execution on the affected site.
Public references point to a fix committed in changeset 3188546 that addresses the api_key handling, and Wordfence has published corresponding threat intelligence for the vulnerability.
EPSS scores rose from a low baseline to a peak of 0.1189 on 2025-12-11 before receding, indicating a clear post-disclosure increase in exploitation interest.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2024-33455
Vulnerability details
The Spam protection, Anti-Spam, FireWall by CleanTalk plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized Arbitrary Plugin Installation due to an missing empty value check on the 'api_key' value in the 'perform' function in all versions up to, and including, 6.44.…
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This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to install and activate arbitrary plugins which can be leveraged to achieve remote code execution if another vulnerable plugin is installed and activated.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
No named actor attribution yet. ATT&CK technique mapping in progress for this CVE.
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Implements explicit check and handling for the exceptional condition of audit logging process failure.
Establishing and monitoring system metrics with correlation and response actions helps identify and address improper handling of exceptional conditions.
Provides a defined response to detected conditions by restricting operation, ensuring exceptional conditions are handled rather than ignored or mishandled.
Contingency training equips users with defined procedures to check and respond to exceptional conditions during disruptions, reducing exploitation of mishandled errors.
Testing verifies the system's ability to detect, handle, and recover from exceptional conditions as part of the plan, reducing exploitability of improper exception handling.
Regular updates keep contingency procedures aligned with system changes, providing structured handling for exceptional conditions that would otherwise allow unmitigated exploitation.
Policy defines checks and handling for exceptional conditions arising from security incidents.
Performing IR tests ensures exceptional conditions are properly checked and handled to enable effective response.