CVE-2024-3097 is a vulnerability identified in the NextGEN Gallery plugin for WordPress, developed by smub, affecting all versions up to and including 3.59. The root cause is a missing authorization (capability) check in the get_item function, which is responsible for retrieving image data. Due to this missing check, unauthenticated attackers can remotely invoke this function to extract sensitive metadata from any image uploaded through the plugin. This metadata includes EXIF data, which often contains sensitive information such as GPS coordinates, camera details, timestamps, and other embedded information that could compromise user privacy or organizational security. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-862 (Missing Authorization), indicating a failure to properly restrict access to sensitive functions. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 5.3 (medium severity), reflecting that the attack vector is network-based (AV:N), requires no privileges (PR:N), no user interaction (UI:N), and impacts confidentiality (C:L) but not integrity or availability. There are no known exploits in the wild at the time of publication, and no official patches have been linked yet. However, the widespread use of WordPress and the popularity of NextGEN Gallery make this vulnerability a significant concern for website administrators and organizations relying on this plugin for image management.

The primary impact of CVE-2024-3097 is unauthorized disclosure of sensitive image metadata, which can lead to privacy violations and information leakage. EXIF data can reveal geolocation, device identifiers, timestamps, and other details that attackers could use for reconnaissance, targeted attacks, or social engineering. While the vulnerability does not allow modification or deletion of data, the exposure of metadata can compromise user privacy and potentially reveal sensitive operational details for organizations. Websites using NextGEN Gallery may inadvertently expose confidential information embedded in images, which could be exploited by threat actors to map physical locations or identify personnel. The ease of exploitation (no authentication or user interaction required) increases the risk of automated scanning and data harvesting. This could affect a wide range of organizations, including media companies, e-commerce sites, educational institutions, and any entity using WordPress with this plugin. The lack of known exploits currently limits immediate widespread damage, but the vulnerability remains a significant risk until remediated.

1. Immediate mitigation involves restricting access to the get_item function by implementing custom authorization checks via WordPress hooks or firewall rules to block unauthenticated requests targeting this function. 2. Administrators should monitor web server logs for unusual or repeated access attempts to the plugin’s endpoints that retrieve image metadata. 3. Remove or sanitize sensitive EXIF metadata from images before uploading them to the site using image processing tools or plugins that strip metadata. 4. Limit public access to image galleries or restrict access to authenticated users only until a patch is available. 5. Keep the NextGEN Gallery plugin updated and monitor the vendor’s announcements for official patches or security updates addressing this vulnerability. 6. Employ Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block exploitation attempts targeting this vulnerability. 7. Conduct regular security audits and vulnerability scans focusing on WordPress plugins to identify similar missing authorization issues. 8. Educate content uploaders about the risks of embedding sensitive metadata in images and encourage metadata removal prior to upload.