CVE-2023-48769 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability identified in the Blue Coral Chat Bubble plugin, which provides floating chat functionality with contact icons and messaging options including Telegram, Email, SMS, and callback requests. The vulnerability affects versions up to 2.3 of the plugin. CSRF vulnerabilities allow an attacker to trick an authenticated user into submitting unwanted actions on a web application in which they are currently authenticated, without their consent or knowledge. In this case, an attacker could craft a malicious request that, when executed by a user logged into a website using the vulnerable Blue Coral Chat Bubble plugin, could cause unintended actions such as sending messages or triggering callbacks. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 4.3, indicating a medium severity level. The vector string (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N) shows that the attack can be performed remotely over the network without privileges but requires user interaction (clicking a malicious link). The impact is limited to integrity (unauthorized actions) without affecting confidentiality or availability. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-352, which is a common web application security weakness related to CSRF attacks. Given the plugin’s integration with multiple communication channels, exploitation could lead to unauthorized message sending or manipulation of contact requests, potentially leading to social engineering or spam campaigns.

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability depends largely on the extent to which the Blue Coral Chat Bubble plugin is used on their public-facing websites or internal portals. Organizations relying on this plugin for customer interaction risk unauthorized actions being performed on their behalf, such as sending messages or initiating callbacks without user consent. This could lead to reputational damage, customer trust erosion, and potential regulatory scrutiny under GDPR if personal data is mishandled or if unauthorized communications are sent. While the vulnerability does not directly compromise data confidentiality or system availability, the integrity impact could facilitate phishing or social engineering attacks by leveraging the compromised communication channels. Additionally, organizations in sectors with high customer interaction volumes (e.g., e-commerce, financial services, telecommunications) may face amplified risks. The requirement for user interaction means that phishing or social engineering tactics would likely be needed to exploit this vulnerability effectively.

1. Immediate mitigation should include disabling or removing the Blue Coral Chat Bubble plugin from websites until a patch is available. 2. Monitor official vendor channels and security advisories for patches or updates addressing CVE-2023-48769 and apply them promptly. 3. Implement anti-CSRF tokens and verify the origin of requests within the web application to prevent unauthorized actions. 4. Employ Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to restrict the sources of executable scripts and reduce the risk of malicious request injection. 5. Educate users and administrators about the risks of clicking unsolicited links, especially those that could trigger actions on authenticated sessions. 6. Conduct regular security assessments and penetration testing focusing on web application vulnerabilities, including CSRF. 7. For organizations unable to remove the plugin immediately, consider implementing Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block suspicious CSRF attempts targeting the plugin’s endpoints.