CaptchaWordPress extension · Bestwebsoft
CVE-2017-2171
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedCross-site scripting vulnerability in Captcha prior to version 4.3.0, Car Rental prior to version 1.0.5, Contact Form Multi prior to version 1.2.1, Contact Form prior to version 4.0.6, Contact Form to DB prior to version 1.5.7, Custom Admin Page prior to version 0.1.2, Custom Fields Search prior to version 1.3.2, Custom Search prior to version 1.36, Donate prior to version 2.1.1, Email Queue prior to version 1.1.2, Error Log Viewer prior to version 1.0.6, Facebook Button prior to version 2.54, Featured Posts prior to version 1.0.1, Gallery Categories prior to version 1.0.9, Gallery prior to version 4.5.0, Google +1 prior to version 1.3.4, Google AdSense prior to version 1.44, Google Analytics prior to version 1.7.1, Google Captcha (reCAPTCHA) prior to version 1.28, Google Maps prior to version 1.3.6, Google Shortlink prior to version 1.5.3, Google Sitemap prior to version 3.0.8, Htaccess prior to version 1.7.6, Job Board prior to version 1.1.3, Latest Posts prior to version 0.3, Limit Attempts prior to version 1.1.8, LinkedIn prior to version 1.0.5, Multilanguage prior to version 1.2.2, PDF & Print prior to version 1.9.4, Pagination prior to version 1.0.7, Pinterest prior to version 1.0.5, Popular Posts prior to version 1.0.5, Portfolio prior to version 2.4, Post to CSV prior to version 1.3.1, Profile Extra prior to version 1.0.7. PromoBar prior to version 1.1.1, Quotes and Tips prior to version 1.32, Re-attacher prior to version 1.0.9, Realty prior to version 1.1.0, Relevant - Related Posts prior to version 1.2.0, Sender prior to version 1.2.1, SMTP prior to version 1.1.0, Social Buttons Pack prior to version 1.1.1, Subscriber prior to version 1.3.5, Testimonials prior to version 0.1.9, Timesheet prior to version 0.1.5, Twitter Button prior to version 2.55, User Role prior to version 1.5.6, Updater prior to version 1.35, Visitors Online prior to version 1.0.0, and Zendesk Help Center prior to version 1.0.5 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the function to display the BestWebSoft menu.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceThis is a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability affecting the shared BestWebSoft menu function across 50+ WordPress plugins. Attackers can inject malicious JavaScript or HTML that executes when administrators view the plugin menu, potentially leading to session hijacking or privilege escalation.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
CaptchaWordPress extension
<= 4.2.9
Car RentalWordPress extension
<= 1.0.4
Contact FormWordPress extension
<= 4.0.5
Contact Form MultiWordPress extension
<= 1.2.0
Contact Form To DbWordPress extension
<= 1.5.6
Custom Admin PageWordPress extension
<= 0.1.1
Custom Fields SearchWordPress extension
<= 1.3.1
Custom SearchWordPress extension
<= 1.35CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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List installed WordPress pluginsIn the WordPress admin dashboard, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins, or use wp-cli: wp plugin list --status=active --format=tableAffected if Any BestWebSoft plugins are installed and active
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Identify BestWebSoft pluginsLook for plugins with 'BestWebSoft' in the author/developer field, or check for plugins starting with 'Bestwebsoft' in the plugin name columnAffected if Any of the following plugins are present: Captcha, Car Rental, Contact Form, Contact Form Multi, Contact Form To Db, Custom Admin Page, Custom Fields Search, or Custom Search
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Check installed version numbersIn Plugins > Installed Plugins, click on the plugin to view details and note the version number. Alternatively, inspect the plugin's main PHP file header for the 'Version' fieldAffected if Version is at or below: Captcha 4.2.9, Car Rental 1.0.4, Contact Form 4.0.5, Contact Form Multi 1.2.0, Contact Form To Db 1.5.6, Custom Admin Page 0.1.1, Custom Fields Search 1.3.1, Custom Search 1.35
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Verify the shared menu function is loadedCheck if the plugin's admin menu is accessible by viewing the WordPress admin sidebar. The vulnerability triggers when an administrator views the plugin's menu page in the dashboardAffected if The BestWebSoft plugin menu appears in the admin sidebar and the plugin is active
A user is affected if they have any BestWebSoft plugin installed with a version number equal to or lower than the affected ranges listed above.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpdate all affected BestWebSoft plugins to their patched versions (Captcha 4.3.0, Contact Form 4.0.6, Google Captcha 1.28, etc.) or patch the vulnerable menu rendering function if updates are not feasible.
Fix this in Captcha
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-2171 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-2171 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data