Case Study: Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) in WordPress Plugins

c/msccs-buffer-overflow-cve-2025-40123.md

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+# Case Study: Buffer Overflow in TLS Handshake Parser (CVE-2025-40123)
+
+Authored by: Harini Dodla

javascript/xss-wordpress-harini.md

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+# Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) in WordPress Plugins
+## A Secure Coding Case Study
+
+**Author:** Harini Dodla  
+**Institution:** George Mason University
+
+ ## Overview
+
+Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) is one of the most common and dangerous vulnerabilities affecting modern websites. It occurs when untrusted user input is displayed on a webpage without proper sanitization or escaping, allowing attackers to inject malicious JavaScript. Since a large percentage of the internet runs on WordPress, even a small vulnerability in a plugin can expose millions of users.
+
+This case study focuses on a real and recurring pattern of XSS issues found in WordPress plugins. Many plugin developers do not consistently use WordPress’s built-in escaping and sanitization functions, creating opportunities for attackers to execute scripts in victims’ browsers. This study explains how XSS happens, demonstrates the impact, and provides actionable recommendations for secure coding.
+## Specific Vulnerability
+
+This case study focuses on a specific stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability
+found in a WordPress plugin that failed to properly sanitize and escape user-supplied
+input before rendering it on an admin page.
+
+For example, vulnerabilities such as CVE-2023-2745 demonstrate how improper handling
+of user input in WordPress plugins allows attackers to inject malicious JavaScript that
+executes in the context of an authenticated administrator.
+
+## Description of the Vulnerability
+
+XSS happens when an application takes user-supplied input (such as a form field, comment, or setting) and outputs it directly into HTML. If the output is not escaped properly, an attacker can inject code like:
+
+html
+<script>alert('Hacked!')</script>
+
+## Root Cause Analysis
+
+The root cause of this vulnerability is improper handling of user-controlled input
+within the WordPress plugin. User input was stored and later rendered without adequate
+sanitization or escaping.
+
+Developers failed to use WordPress-provided escaping functions such as esc_html() or
+esc_attr(), allowing injected JavaScript to execute when the data was displayed.
+
+## Prevention and Secure Coding Practices
+
+To prevent Cross-Site Scripting vulnerabilities in WordPress plugins, developers should:
+
+- Sanitize all user input using functions such as sanitize_text_field()
+- Escape output using esc_html(), esc_attr(), or wp_kses() based on context
+- Avoid directly echoing user-controlled input into HTML
+- Implement WordPress nonces to protect against CSRF
+- Conduct security reviews and testing before releasing plugins
+
+Following these secure coding practices significantly reduces the risk of XSS attacks.
+
+