CVE-2024-3495 is a critical SQL Injection vulnerability identified in the Country State City Dropdown CF7 plugin for WordPress, affecting all versions up to and including 2.7.2. The root cause is insufficient escaping and lack of prepared statements for the 'cnt' and 'sid' parameters, which are user-supplied inputs used in SQL queries. This improper neutralization allows attackers to append arbitrary SQL commands to existing queries, enabling unauthorized access to sensitive database information. The vulnerability is exploitable remotely over the network without any authentication or user interaction, making it highly accessible to attackers. The plugin is commonly used to provide dynamic dropdowns for country, state, and city selections in WordPress forms, which means many websites could be affected. The CVSS v3.1 score of 9.8 reflects the high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, as attackers can extract, modify, or delete data, or disrupt service. Although no known exploits are currently in the wild, the vulnerability's nature and ease of exploitation make it a significant threat. The lack of a patch at the time of disclosure necessitates immediate mitigation steps. This vulnerability falls under CWE-89, highlighting improper neutralization of special elements in SQL commands, a classic injection flaw. Organizations relying on this plugin should prioritize vulnerability assessment and remediation to prevent exploitation.

The impact of CVE-2024-3495 is severe for organizations using the affected WordPress plugin. Successful exploitation can lead to unauthorized disclosure of sensitive data stored in the backend database, including user information, credentials, or business-critical data. Attackers can also alter or delete data, compromising data integrity and potentially causing operational disruptions. The availability of the affected service can be impacted if attackers execute destructive queries or cause database crashes. Since the vulnerability requires no authentication or user interaction, it can be exploited by any remote attacker scanning for vulnerable sites, increasing the risk of widespread attacks. This can lead to data breaches, regulatory non-compliance, reputational damage, and financial losses. Organizations with public-facing WordPress sites using this plugin are particularly at risk, including e-commerce, government, education, and media sectors. The critical severity and ease of exploitation make this a high-priority threat that could be leveraged in broader attack campaigns or ransomware operations if combined with other vulnerabilities.

To mitigate CVE-2024-3495, organizations should immediately update the Country State City Dropdown CF7 plugin to a patched version once available. Until a patch is released, implement the following specific measures: 1) Employ Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block SQL injection attempts targeting the 'cnt' and 'sid' parameters. 2) Disable or restrict the plugin's functionality if feasible, especially on high-risk or public-facing forms. 3) Conduct thorough input validation and sanitization on all user inputs at the application level, ensuring parameters do not contain SQL control characters or unexpected data. 4) Review and harden database permissions to limit the plugin's database user to only necessary privileges, minimizing potential damage. 5) Monitor logs for unusual query patterns or errors indicative of injection attempts. 6) Educate development and security teams on secure coding practices, emphasizing the use of parameterized queries and prepared statements to prevent injection flaws. 7) Perform regular vulnerability scans and penetration testing focused on WordPress plugins. These targeted actions go beyond generic advice and help reduce the attack surface until official fixes are deployed.