CVE-2024-9352 is a medium-severity CSRF vulnerability identified in the Forminator Forms plugin for WordPress, which is widely used for creating contact, payment, and custom forms. The vulnerability exists in all versions up to and including 1.35.1 due to missing or improper nonce validation in the 'create_module' function responsible for creating new forms. Nonce tokens are security measures designed to prevent CSRF attacks by ensuring that requests originate from legitimate users. The absence or incorrect implementation of nonce validation allows an unauthenticated attacker to craft a malicious request that, if an administrator clicks on a specially crafted link, results in the creation of unauthorized draft forms on the site. Although the attacker cannot directly execute actions without user interaction, the ability to create draft forms could be leveraged for further attacks such as phishing or injecting malicious content if combined with other vulnerabilities or social engineering. The vulnerability does not affect confidentiality or availability directly but compromises the integrity of the site’s form management. The CVSS score of 4.3 reflects the attack vector as network-based with low complexity and no privileges required, but user interaction is necessary. No patches or exploits are currently publicly available, but the risk remains significant for sites with administrative users who might be targeted with social engineering. The plugin’s popularity in the WordPress ecosystem means a large number of sites could be affected globally.

The primary impact of CVE-2024-9352 is the unauthorized creation of draft forms on affected WordPress sites, which compromises the integrity of site content and form management. Attackers could use this capability to insert malicious forms for phishing, data collection, or to facilitate further attacks such as malware distribution or privilege escalation if combined with other vulnerabilities. While the vulnerability does not directly expose sensitive data or cause denial of service, the potential for social engineering and subsequent exploitation poses a risk to organizational security posture. Organizations relying on Forminator Forms for critical customer interactions or payment processing could face reputational damage and potential financial loss if attackers leverage this flaw. The requirement for administrator interaction limits the ease of exploitation but does not eliminate risk, especially in environments with high administrative activity or where administrators are targeted by phishing campaigns. The absence of known exploits in the wild suggests limited active exploitation currently, but the vulnerability should be treated proactively to prevent future attacks.

To mitigate CVE-2024-9352, organizations should immediately update the Forminator Forms plugin to a version that addresses the nonce validation issue once available. Until a patch is released, administrators should implement strict access controls to limit administrative user exposure and educate administrators about the risks of clicking untrusted links. Employing web application firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block suspicious requests targeting form creation endpoints can reduce risk. Additionally, enabling multi-factor authentication (MFA) for WordPress administrative accounts can help prevent unauthorized access even if social engineering is attempted. Regularly auditing installed plugins and monitoring administrative actions for anomalies can provide early detection of exploitation attempts. Disabling or restricting the use of the vulnerable plugin on sites where it is not essential can also reduce the attack surface. Finally, organizations should maintain up-to-date backups to recover quickly if malicious forms are created or other related compromises occur.