Auth bypass in Google Web Stories
CVE-2023-1979
The Web Stories for WordPress plugin supports the WordPress built-in functionality of protecting content with a password. The content is then only accessible to website visitors after entering the password. In WordPress, users with the "Author" role can create stories, but don't have the ability to edit password protected stories. The vulnerability allowed users with said role to bypass this permission check when trying to duplicate the protected story in the plugin's own dashboard, giving them access to the seemingly protected content. We recommend upgrading to version 1.32 or beyond commit ad49781c2a35c5c92ef704d4b621ab4e5cb77d68 https://github.com/GoogleForCreators/web-stories-wp/commit/ad49781c2a35c5c92ef704d4b621ab4e5cb77d68
Vulnerability class: Broken Access Control
EPSS: 0.004 (36.2th percentile) — read the EPSS interpretation.
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 4.9 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.
Affected products
- Google Web_stories
- Google Web Stories For Wordpress — versions 0
Weakness classification (CWE)
Public proof-of-concept exploits
References
- cve-coordination@google.com (Patch)
- cve-coordination@google.com (Release Notes)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2023-1979?
- CVE-2023-1979 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Google Web Stories, classified under Incorrect Authorization. CVSS score: 4.9/10. Published 2023-05-08.
- How severe is CVE-2023-1979?
- Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 4.9 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2023-1979 known to be exploited?
- 1 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.