CVE-2024-3715 is a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability classified under CWE-80, found in the Database for Contact Form 7, WPforms, and Elementor forms plugin developed by crmperks for WordPress. This vulnerability affects all versions up to and including 1.3.8. The root cause is insufficient sanitization of user input and inadequate escaping of output, which allows unauthenticated attackers to inject arbitrary JavaScript code into web pages that store and display form submissions. When a legitimate user accesses a page containing the injected script, the malicious code executes in their browser context, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, or unauthorized actions performed on behalf of the user. The vulnerability does not require any authentication or user interaction to exploit, increasing its risk profile. The CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.2 reflects a network attack vector, low attack complexity, no privileges required, no user interaction, and a scope change with partial confidentiality and integrity impact but no availability impact. Although no known exploits have been reported in the wild, the widespread use of the affected plugins in WordPress sites globally makes this a critical issue to address promptly. The vulnerability was publicly disclosed on May 2, 2024, and remains unpatched as of the data provided, with no official patch links available yet.

The exploitation of CVE-2024-3715 can have significant impacts on organizations worldwide that use the affected WordPress plugins. Successful exploitation enables attackers to execute arbitrary scripts in the context of users visiting compromised pages, potentially leading to theft of sensitive information such as authentication cookies, personal data, or administrative credentials. This can result in unauthorized access to user accounts, privilege escalation, and further compromise of the affected websites. The integrity of data submitted through forms can be undermined, and attackers may also use the vulnerability to deliver malware or conduct phishing attacks targeting site visitors. Although availability is not directly impacted, the reputational damage and loss of user trust from such attacks can be severe. Given the plugins' popularity among small to medium-sized businesses, e-commerce sites, and service providers, the scope of affected systems is broad, increasing the potential scale of impact. The lack of authentication and user interaction requirements lowers the barrier for exploitation, making it accessible to a wide range of attackers, including automated bots.

To mitigate CVE-2024-3715, organizations should take immediate and specific actions beyond generic advice: 1) Monitor official crmperks channels and WordPress plugin repositories for patches or updates addressing this vulnerability and apply them promptly once available. 2) In the absence of an official patch, implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block suspicious input patterns characteristic of XSS payloads targeting form submission endpoints. 3) Conduct a thorough audit of all form input handling and output rendering processes in the affected plugins, applying manual sanitization and escaping where feasible. 4) Restrict access to administrative and form management pages to trusted IP addresses or authenticated users only, reducing exposure to unauthenticated injection attempts. 5) Employ Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to limit the execution of inline scripts and reduce the impact of injected scripts. 6) Educate site administrators and developers on secure coding practices related to input validation and output encoding. 7) Regularly scan websites for signs of compromise or injected scripts using specialized security tools. 8) Consider temporarily disabling the affected plugins if immediate patching or mitigation is not possible, especially on high-risk or high-traffic sites.