Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a stored cross-site scripting flaw in the Essential Addons for Elementor WordPress plugin. A logged-in user with Contributor-level access or higher could place script content through the Accordion widget, causing it to run when someone views the affected page. Business impact depends on who can contribute content and who later views it.
Executive priority
Treat this as a moderate-priority WordPress content integrity issue. It is not listed as actively exploited in the provided sources, but sites with many content contributors should patch promptly because stored XSS can affect administrators and visitors.
Technical view
CVE-2024-1172 is CWE-79 in Essential Addons for Elementor up to and including 5.9.8. The Accordion widget lacked sufficient input sanitization and output escaping. The CVSS 3.1 score is 5.4, with network access, low complexity, low privileges required, and low confidentiality and integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on WordPress sites running Essential Addons for Elementor versions 5.9.8 or older, especially where Contributor or higher roles are assigned to many users, contractors, or content partners.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or cited evidence of active exploitation. Exploitation requires authenticated Contributor-level or higher access, then execution occurs when users visit an affected page containing the stored script.
Researcher notes
The public evidence points to insufficient sanitization and escaping in the Accordion element, with relevant WordPress Trac file references and a changeset. The bundle does not provide exploit telemetry, proof of active exploitation, or detailed fixed-version notes beyond versions through 5.9.8 being affected.
Mitigation direction
- Identify sites running Essential Addons for Elementor version 5.9.8 or older.
- Update the plugin beyond 5.9.8 following vendor or WordPress plugin guidance.
- Restrict Contributor and higher roles to trusted users only.
- Review pages using the Accordion widget for unexpected script content.
- Check vendor guidance if immediate upgrade is not possible.
Validation and detection
- Inventory WordPress installations and installed Essential Addons for Elementor versions.
- Confirm whether Contributor-level users can edit Elementor Accordion content.
- Review recent page changes by Contributor, Author, Editor, or Administrator accounts.
- Test updated sites to confirm Accordion content renders without unexpected script execution.
- Monitor WordPress audit logs for suspicious content edits.
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-79: User-session and phishing behavior lookup
Client-side and session-facing weaknesses should be reviewed alongside initial-access and user-execution behaviors. 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 lookupCVE-2024-1172 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
- Medium
- CVSS
- 5.4 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N
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 vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N2.82.5Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
5.4MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/f2ff2cc6-b584-442b-890b-033a0a047c24?source=cveCVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/essential-addons-for-elementor-lite/tags/5.9.7/includes/Elements/Adv_Accordion.php#L1292CVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?sfp_email=&sfph_mail=&reponame=&new=3034127%40essential-addons-for-elementor-lite%2Ftrunk&old=3029928%40essential-addons-for-elementor-lite%2Ftrunk&sfp_email=&sfph_mail=CVE reference
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 Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.