Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2024-13442 is a critical-severity Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel (CWE-288) vulnerability in Themeforest (inferred from references). Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Data Obfuscation (T1001); ranked at the 36th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-25 (Reference Monitor) and AC-3 (Access Enforcement) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2024-13442 is a privilege escalation vulnerability via account takeover affecting the Service Finder Bookings plugin for WordPress in all versions up to and including 5.0. The issue stems from the plugin's failure to properly validate a user's identity before performing post-booking auto-login actions or updating profile details, such as passwords. This flaw, mapped to CWE-288 and assigned a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8 (Critical), enables severe authentication bypass.
Unauthenticated attackers can exploit this vulnerability over the network with low complexity and no user interaction required. If an attacker's email address is known, they can log in as that arbitrary user; alternatively, they can update any user's password, including administrators, to gain unauthorized access to their accounts. Successful exploitation results in high impacts to confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H).
Advisories, including the Wordfence threat intelligence report, provide additional details on the vulnerability. The plugin is available via the ThemeForest marketplace at the referenced URL. No specific patch information is detailed in the available CVE data.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2024-54112
Vulnerability Data
The Service Finder Bookings plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation via account takeover in all versions up to, and including, 5.0. This is due to the plugin not properly validating a user's identity prior to (1) performing a…
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post-booking auto-login or (2) updating their profile details (e.g. password). This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to (1) login as an arbitrary user if their email address is known or (2) change an arbitrary user's password, including administrators, and leverage that to gain access to their account.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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- 7 hardening rules · 3 OS baselines
V6.4.3V6.6.1V12.1.3
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Requires a tamperproof, always-invoked reference monitor that structurally blocks bypass via any alternate path.
Enforces authorization checks on every logical access path, eliminating unauthenticated alternate channels.
Mandates unique identification and authentication for all organizational users, covering the primary authentication requirement.
Controls all external and key internal interfaces, reducing the chance of unauthenticated alternate channels.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Requiring authentication on every channel and path directly eliminates alternate-path bypasses.
Enforcing authorizations and least privilege across all access vectors prevents unauthenticated alternate paths.
Protecting networks and environments from unauthorized logical access blocks bypass via undocumented channels.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
A.5.15 only requires defining a topic-specific access control policy and determining requirements; it does not itself enforce, implement or configure any access rules that would stop an alternate unauthenticated path from being exploitable.
Access rights provisioning and review prevent bypass via unmonitored or alternate channels.
Hardening callouts derived
Configuration rules from DISA STIG baselines that bear on weaknesses of the type cited by this CVE. Each rule is shown with the relationship its mapping actually records, against the CWE it was authored against. Derived via CVE→CWE over `controls_xwalks` (higher-evidence rows only; rows rated `none` are excluded).
Oracle Linux 8 (2 rules)
- V-248598 There must be no ".shosts" files on the OL 8 operating system. blocks CWE-288
- V-248827 OL 8 must not have the rsh-server package installed. blocks CWE-288
Oracle Linux 9 (2 rules)
- V-271757 OL 9 file systems must not contain shosts.equiv files. blocks CWE-288
- V-271758 OL 9 file systems must not contain .shosts files. blocks CWE-288
RHEL 7 (3 rules)
- V-204440 Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating systems version 7.2 or newer using Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) must require authentication upon booting into single-user and maintenance modes. blocks CWE-288
- V-204442 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not have the rsh-server package installed. blocks CWE-288
- V-204424 The Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system must not allow accounts configured with blank or null passwords. blocks CWE-288