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Missing AuthorizationWeakness · CWE-862

CVE-2023-38383

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-13
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
60/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable Zero-click

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 · unedited
Missing Authorization vulnerability in OnTheGoSystems Language allows Exploiting Incorrectly Configured Access Control Security Levels.This issue affects Language: from n/a through 1.2.1.

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 · moderate confidence

A missing authorization vulnerability in the OnTheGoSystems Language plugin (commonly associated with WPML) allows attackers to exploit incorrectly configured access control security levels. The vulnerability stems from insufficient authorization checks on certain functions, potentially enabling unauthorized users to access or modify language settings they should not have permission to access.

MitigationUpdate the Language plugin to version 1.2.2 or later where the authorization checks have been properly implemented. If immediate update is not possible, restrict administrative access and audit user permissions.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS 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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
Low
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify if the Language plugin by OnTheGoSystems (WPML) is installed
    Locate the plugin directory or check the plugin list in the CMS admin panel for a plugin named 'Language' or 'WPML' from OnTheGoSystems
    Affected if The plugin is present and active in the environment
  2. Identify the installed version of the Language plugin
    Check the plugin header, version file, or admin interface for the current version number
    Affected if The version cannot be determined or is lower than 1.2.2
  3. Compare the installed version against the affected range
    Compare the identified version to version 1.2.2 - versions prior to 1.2.2 are affected
    Affected if The installed version is any version before 1.2.2
  4. Review access control configuration for language settings
    Inspect the plugin security settings or user role permissions related to language configuration functions
    Affected if The plugin allows low-privilege or unauthorized users to access or modify language settings that should be restricted

The environment is affected if the OnTheGoSystems Language plugin (WPML) is installed with a version prior to 1.2.2 and has misconfigured access control that permits unauthorized access to language settings.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update the Language plugin to version 1.2.2 or later where the authorization checks have been properly implemented. If immediate update is not possible, restrict administrative access and audit user permissions.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-38383 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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
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