Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This WordPress plugin flaw could let any site user reset the blog administrator password and take over the site. The source bundle says the administrator may not receive an email notice, increasing stealth. No active exploitation evidence is provided.
Executive priority
Treat this as high priority for any affected public WordPress site because it can lead to administrator takeover. Prioritize internet-facing sites and sites handling customer or business-critical content.
Technical view
Profile Builder before 3.4.9 improperly checked password-reset keys, creating an authentication bypass mapped to CWE-287. The reported impact is unauthorized administrator password reset and access. The bundle does not provide CVSS, exploit maturity, or detailed affected-version ranges beyond the pre-3.4.9 statement.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to WordPress sites using User Registration & User Profile - Profile Builder versions before 3.4.9. Confirm exact installed plugin versions because the bundled affected metadata is sparse and inconsistent.
Exploitation context
The provided sources describe an unauthenticated or low-privilege account takeover path, but do not provide exploit steps. CISA KEV is false, and the bundle cites no evidence of active exploitation.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports a reset-key validation bypass in Profile Builder before 3.4.9. No CVSS vector, PoC status, or active exploitation evidence is included. Avoid assuming broader plugin families or unrelated WordPress components are affected.
Mitigation direction
- Update Profile Builder to 3.4.9 or later where applicable.
- If updating is not possible, disable the plugin until vendor guidance is applied.
- Review administrator accounts, passwords, and active sessions after remediation.
- Check vendor and WPScan guidance for any additional version-specific instructions.
Validation and detection
- Inventory WordPress sites for the Profile Builder plugin and installed version.
- Confirm no deployed instance is running a version before 3.4.9.
- Review logs for unexpected administrator password resets or logins.
- Verify administrator contact details and account recovery settings remain trusted.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-287: Credential and account abuse lookup
Authentication and credential weaknesses can make valid-account abuse and credential telemetry useful review starting points. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCredential and access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references authentication or credential exposure, so valid-account and credential-access review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-24527 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/c142e738-bc4b-4058-a03e-1be6fca47207CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Improper Authentication
Improper Authentication represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.