The LA-Studio Element Kit for Elementor WordPress plugin suffers from a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-4431, classified under CWE-79. This vulnerability exists in all versions up to and including 1.3.7.6 due to improper neutralization of input during web page generation. Specifically, the 'id' parameter is not sufficiently sanitized or escaped before being rendered on pages, allowing authenticated users with contributor-level permissions or higher to inject arbitrary JavaScript code. When other users access the affected pages, the injected scripts execute in their browsers, potentially leading to session hijacking, privilege escalation, or unauthorized actions within the context of the victim's session. The vulnerability requires network access and low attack complexity but does not require user interaction beyond viewing the compromised page. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 6.4, indicating a medium severity level with partial impact on confidentiality and integrity but no impact on availability. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild. The vulnerability highlights the risk of insufficient input validation in WordPress plugins, especially those that allow content creation or editing by multiple user roles. Since Elementor and its add-ons are widely used to build WordPress sites, this vulnerability could affect a broad range of websites, particularly those that allow contributors to add or edit content. The lack of an official patch at the time of reporting necessitates immediate mitigation steps to reduce risk.

The primary impact of CVE-2024-4431 is the potential compromise of user confidentiality and integrity on affected WordPress sites. Attackers with contributor-level access can inject malicious scripts that execute in the browsers of site visitors or administrators, enabling theft of session cookies, defacement, or unauthorized actions performed with the victim's privileges. This can lead to account takeover, data leakage, or manipulation of site content. Although availability is not directly affected, the reputational damage and potential data breaches can have significant operational and financial consequences. Organizations relying on the LA-Studio Element Kit for Elementor, especially those with multiple contributors or editors, face increased risk of internal threat exploitation or compromised user accounts. The vulnerability could be leveraged in targeted attacks against high-value websites, including e-commerce, media, or corporate portals, where trust and data integrity are critical. The absence of known exploits in the wild reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, as attackers may develop exploits once the vulnerability becomes widely known.

1. Immediately restrict contributor-level and higher user permissions to trusted individuals only, minimizing the risk of malicious script injection. 2. Conduct a thorough audit of existing content and pages created or edited by contributors to detect and remove any injected scripts or suspicious code. 3. Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block suspicious payloads targeting the 'id' parameter or typical XSS patterns in requests to the plugin. 4. Monitor logs for unusual activity or unexpected script execution patterns on affected pages. 5. Encourage site administrators to apply updates or patches from the plugin vendor as soon as they are released. 6. If no patch is available, consider temporarily disabling the LA-Studio Element Kit plugin or limiting its usage to reduce exposure. 7. Educate content contributors about safe content practices and the risks of injecting untrusted code. 8. Employ Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to restrict the execution of unauthorized scripts on the website. 9. Regularly back up website data to enable recovery in case of compromise. These steps go beyond generic advice by focusing on permission management, proactive content auditing, and layered defenses specific to this plugin's vulnerability.