CVE-2024-7703 is a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability identified in the ARMember – Membership Plugin for WordPress, which provides membership management, content restriction, member levels, user profiles, and signup functionalities. The vulnerability exists due to improper neutralization of input during web page generation (CWE-79), specifically related to SVG file uploads. The plugin fails to adequately sanitize and escape SVG content, allowing authenticated users with Subscriber-level access or higher to upload malicious SVG files containing embedded scripts. These scripts are stored on the server and executed in the context of any user who views the SVG file, enabling attackers to perform actions such as session hijacking, cookie theft, or executing unauthorized commands within the victim's browser session. The vulnerability affects all versions up to and including 4.0.37. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 6.4, reflecting a medium severity with a network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), requiring privileges (PR:L), no user interaction (UI:N), and impacting confidentiality and integrity with a scope change (S:C). Although no known exploits have been reported in the wild, the vulnerability poses a significant risk due to the widespread use of WordPress and the ARMember plugin in membership and content-restricted websites. The vulnerability's exploitation does not require user interaction beyond accessing the malicious SVG, increasing its risk profile. The issue highlights the importance of proper input validation and output encoding, especially for file uploads that can contain executable content like SVGs.

The exploitation of CVE-2024-7703 can lead to unauthorized script execution in the context of affected websites, compromising user sessions and potentially allowing attackers to impersonate legitimate users or escalate privileges. This can result in data theft, unauthorized content modification, or further compromise of the web application and its users. For organizations relying on the ARMember plugin, this vulnerability threatens the confidentiality and integrity of user data and membership management processes. Since the attack vector is network-based and requires only low-level authenticated access, attackers can exploit this vulnerability remotely with relative ease. The scope change in the CVSS vector indicates that the vulnerability can affect components beyond the initially compromised privileges, potentially impacting other users and administrative functions. The absence of required user interaction means that any user accessing the malicious SVG content is at risk, broadening the potential impact. Organizations with large user bases or sensitive membership data are at higher risk, as successful exploitation could lead to reputational damage, regulatory penalties, and loss of user trust.

To mitigate CVE-2024-7703, organizations should first update the ARMember plugin to a patched version once available. In the absence of an official patch, administrators should disable or restrict SVG file uploads within the plugin settings or WordPress media library to prevent malicious file uploads. Implementing server-side input validation to reject SVG files containing script elements or suspicious content is critical. Employ strict output encoding and sanitization routines when rendering SVG files or any user-uploaded content to prevent script execution. Additionally, applying Content Security Policy (CSP) headers can help restrict the execution of unauthorized scripts in browsers. Monitoring logs for unusual upload activity or access patterns to SVG files can aid in early detection of exploitation attempts. Limiting user privileges to the minimum necessary and reviewing subscriber-level permissions can reduce the attack surface. Finally, educating users and administrators about the risks of file upload vulnerabilities and maintaining regular security audits will strengthen overall defense.