CVE-2022-2987 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting the Ldap WP Login / Active Directory Integration WordPress plugin versions prior to 3.0.2. The core issue is a missing authorization and CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery) protection when updating the plugin's settings, which are hooked to the WordPress 'init' action. This flaw allows unauthenticated attackers to modify critical plugin configuration parameters without any authentication or user interaction. Specifically, an attacker can change the LDAP server settings used for user authentication. By setting their own malicious LDAP server, attackers can effectively bypass the legitimate authentication mechanism, potentially gaining unauthorized access to the WordPress site or impersonating legitimate users. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-862 (Missing Authorization) and CWE-352 (Cross-Site Request Forgery), highlighting the lack of proper access control and CSRF protections. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.5, reflecting a high severity due to the network exploitable nature (AV:N), no required privileges (PR:N), and no user interaction (UI:N). The impact is primarily on the integrity of the authentication process, as confidentiality and availability are not directly affected. No known exploits have been reported in the wild as of the publication date, but the ease of exploitation and potential for privilege escalation make this a significant threat for affected WordPress sites using this plugin.

For European organizations using WordPress sites integrated with LDAP or Active Directory via this plugin, the vulnerability poses a serious risk to the integrity of user authentication. An attacker exploiting this flaw can redirect authentication requests to a malicious LDAP server, potentially allowing unauthorized access to sensitive internal resources or administrative functions. This could lead to unauthorized data access, privilege escalation, and compromise of the affected web application. Given the widespread use of WordPress in Europe for corporate, governmental, and public sector websites, the vulnerability could undermine trust in affected services and lead to data breaches or service disruptions. Organizations relying on LDAP/AD integration for single sign-on or centralized authentication are particularly at risk, as the attack bypasses these controls. The absence of known exploits suggests the threat is currently theoretical but should be treated proactively due to the high ease of exploitation and critical impact on authentication integrity.

1. Immediate upgrade of the Ldap WP Login / Active Directory Integration plugin to version 3.0.2 or later, where the vulnerability is fixed. 2. If upgrading is not immediately possible, restrict access to the WordPress admin and plugin settings pages using web application firewalls (WAFs) or IP whitelisting to prevent unauthorized access. 3. Implement additional monitoring and alerting for changes to plugin settings or LDAP configuration parameters within WordPress logs. 4. Employ multi-factor authentication (MFA) for WordPress admin accounts to reduce the risk of unauthorized access even if authentication is bypassed. 5. Conduct regular security audits of WordPress plugins, especially those handling authentication, to detect missing authorization or CSRF protections. 6. Consider isolating WordPress instances with LDAP integration in segmented network zones to limit the impact of potential compromises. 7. Educate administrators on the risks of unauthorized plugin configuration changes and encourage prompt patching of known vulnerabilities.