CVE-2024-7291 is a vulnerability in the JetFormBuilder plugin for WordPress, specifically affecting all versions up to and including 3.3.4.1. The root cause is improper privilege management (CWE-269) related to insufficient restrictions on user meta fields. This flaw allows authenticated users who already have administrator-level permissions to escalate their privileges to super-admin status on WordPress installations configured as multi-sites. Super-admins have unrestricted control over the entire multi-site network, including all sites and users, which significantly increases the potential damage from exploitation. The vulnerability does not require user interaction but does require the attacker to be authenticated with high-level permissions already, which limits the initial attack surface but greatly amplifies the risk once exploited. The CVSS v3.1 score of 7.2 (High) reflects the network attack vector, low attack complexity, high privileges required, no user interaction, and high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Although no known exploits are reported in the wild, the vulnerability poses a serious risk to WordPress multi-site environments using JetFormBuilder. The lack of patch links in the provided data suggests that users should monitor vendor advisories closely for updates or consider temporary mitigations.

The impact of CVE-2024-7291 is significant for organizations using WordPress multi-site configurations with the JetFormBuilder plugin. Successful exploitation grants attackers super-admin privileges, enabling full control over the entire multi-site network. This includes the ability to modify or delete any site content, add or remove users, install or remove plugins and themes, and potentially deploy malicious code or backdoors. The compromise of super-admin accounts can lead to widespread data breaches, defacement, service disruption, and long-term persistence of attackers within the environment. Given WordPress's popularity for content management worldwide, especially in enterprise and multi-site deployments, the vulnerability could affect a broad range of sectors including media, education, government, and e-commerce. The requirement for administrator-level access limits exploitation to insiders or attackers who have already compromised an admin account, but the escalation to super-admin privileges dramatically increases the scope and severity of the attack.

To mitigate CVE-2024-7291, organizations should immediately verify if they are running JetFormBuilder versions up to 3.3.4.1 on WordPress multi-site installations. Since no patch links are currently provided, users should monitor the vendor’s official channels for security updates and apply patches as soon as they become available. In the interim, restrict administrator-level access strictly to trusted personnel and implement strong authentication mechanisms such as multi-factor authentication to reduce the risk of credential compromise. Review and harden user meta field permissions and consider disabling or limiting the JetFormBuilder plugin on multi-site environments if feasible. Conduct regular audits of user roles and permissions to detect unauthorized privilege escalations. Employ monitoring and alerting for suspicious administrative activities, especially changes to user roles or super-admin assignments. Additionally, maintain comprehensive backups and have an incident response plan ready to address potential compromises.