CVE-2024-5997 is a vulnerability identified in the 'Duplica – Duplicate Posts, Pages, Custom Posts or Users' WordPress plugin developed by codexpert. The issue stems from a missing authorization check (CWE-862) in the plugin's duplicate_user and duplicate_post functions across all versions up to and including 0.6. This missing capability check allows any authenticated user with at least Subscriber-level privileges to invoke duplication of users and posts/pages without proper permission validation. The vulnerability is exploitable remotely over the network without requiring user interaction beyond authentication. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 4.3 (medium severity), reflecting low impact on confidentiality and availability but a low integrity impact due to unauthorized data modification. The scope is limited to WordPress sites running this specific plugin, which is a niche but potentially widely deployed tool for content duplication. No patches or fixes are currently linked, and no known exploits have been reported in the wild. The vulnerability could be leveraged by attackers to create unauthorized duplicate content or user accounts, potentially facilitating further attacks or content manipulation. The absence of proper authorization checks highlights a common security oversight in WordPress plugin development, emphasizing the need for rigorous capability validation in all sensitive functions.

The primary impact of CVE-2024-5997 is unauthorized modification of WordPress site data, specifically the ability to duplicate users and posts/pages without proper authorization. While this does not directly compromise confidentiality or availability, it undermines data integrity and trustworthiness of site content and user management. Attackers with Subscriber-level access can create duplicate user accounts, which could be used to confuse site administrators, escalate privileges through social engineering, or bypass certain access controls if the site relies on unique user identifiers. Similarly, duplicating posts or pages could lead to content pollution, SEO issues, or facilitate phishing or misinformation campaigns if malicious content is inserted. For organizations relying on WordPress for content management, this could degrade user experience, damage brand reputation, and complicate site administration. Since exploitation requires authenticated access, the threat is limited to insiders or attackers who have compromised low-level accounts. However, given the widespread use of WordPress and the plugin, the vulnerability poses a moderate risk to a broad range of organizations, especially those with less stringent user access controls.

To mitigate CVE-2024-5997, organizations should first verify if they are using the affected 'Duplica – Duplicate Posts, Pages, Custom Posts or Users' plugin in any version up to 0.6. If so, immediate steps include: 1) Temporarily disabling or uninstalling the plugin until a patch is released. 2) Restricting user roles and permissions to minimize the number of users with Subscriber-level or higher access, especially on sites with many contributors or external users. 3) Implementing custom access control measures or filters in WordPress to enforce capability checks on duplication functions, potentially via hooks or custom code. 4) Monitoring user and content duplication activities for unusual patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. 5) Keeping WordPress core and all plugins updated and subscribing to security advisories from the plugin vendor and WordPress security communities. 6) Considering alternative plugins with verified security practices for content duplication needs. Since no official patch is currently linked, proactive access control and monitoring are critical to reduce risk.