CVE-2024-13908

High

Published: 08 March 2025

Published

08 March 2025

Modified

13 March 2025

KEV Added

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Patch

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CVSS Score 7.2 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS Score 0.0162 81.9th percentile

Risk Priority 15 60% EPSS · 20% KEV · 20% CVSS

Summary

CVE-2024-13908 is a high-severity Unrestricted Upload of File with Dangerous Type (CWE-434) vulnerability in Bestwebsoft Smtp. Its CVSS base score is 7.2 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked in the top 18.1% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 SI-10 (Information Input Validation) and SI-2 (Flaw Remediation).

Threat & Defense at a Glance

What attackers do: exploitation maps to Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190) and 2 other techniques. What defenders deploy: see the NIST 800-53 controls recommended below.

Threat & Defense Details

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5)AI

SI-2 Flaw Remediation good match

prevent

Directly requires timely identification, reporting, and patching of the specific flaw in the SMTP plugin's save_options function to prevent arbitrary file uploads.

SI-10 Information Input Validation good match

prevent

Mandates information input validation at critical entry points like the save_options function to enforce file type checks and block unrestricted uploads.

SI-3 Malicious Code Protection partial match

preventdetect

Deploys malicious code protection mechanisms to scan and prevent execution of dangerous files uploaded via the vulnerable plugin function.

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI

T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access

Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.

attack.mitre.org →

T1505.003 Web Shell Persistence

Adversaries may backdoor web servers with web shells to establish persistent access to systems.

attack.mitre.org →

T1105 Ingress Tool Transfer Command And Control

Adversaries may transfer tools or other files from an external system into a compromised environment.

attack.mitre.org →

Why these techniques?

Arbitrary file upload vuln in public-facing WordPress plugin directly enables exploitation of the application (T1190) and facilitates ingress of malicious files like web shells (T1105, T1505.003) for RCE.

Confidence: HIGH · MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise v19.0

NVD Description

The SMTP by BestWebSoft plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file uploads due to missing file type validation in the 'save_options' function in all versions up to, and including, 1.1.9. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Administrator-level…

access and above, to upload arbitrary files on the affected site's server which may make remote code execution possible.

Deeper analysisAI

CVE-2024-13908 is an arbitrary file upload vulnerability in the SMTP by BestWebSoft plugin for WordPress, stemming from missing file type validation in the 'save_options' function. It affects all versions up to and including 1.1.9. The flaw, classified under CWE-434 (Unrestricted Upload of File with Dangerous Type), carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.2 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impacts.

Authenticated attackers with Administrator-level access or higher can exploit this vulnerability over the network with low complexity. By leveraging the flawed 'save_options' function, they can upload arbitrary files to the affected WordPress site's server, potentially enabling remote code execution depending on server configuration and file types like web shells.

Mitigation details are outlined in plugin advisories and patches referenced in Wordfence's threat intelligence and WordPress plugin trac repositories. A fix appears in changeset 3250935, with code changes visible in the 1.1.8 tag of class-bwssmtp-settings.php, recommending immediate updates to versions beyond 1.1.9 for affected sites.