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PHP File Inclusion (RFI/LFI)Weakness · CWE-98

CVE-2024-11429

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-05
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
The Free Responsive Testimonials, Social Proof Reviews, and Customer Reviews – Stars Testimonials plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Local File Inclusion in all versions up to, and including, 3.3.3 via the 'stars-testimonials-with-slider-and-masonry-grid' shortcode. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with contributor-level access and above, to include and execute arbitrary PHP files on the server, allowing the execution of any PHP code in those files. This can be used to bypass access controls, obtain sensitive data, or achieve code execution in cases where PHP files can be uploaded and included.

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 confidence

This is a Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability in the Stars Testimonials WordPress plugin. The vulnerability exists in the 'stars-testimonials-with-slider-and-masonry-grid' shortcode, which fails to properly validate input before using it in file inclusion operations. An authenticated attacker with contributor-level access can manipulate the input to include and execute arbitrary PHP files on the server, leading to remote code execution.

MitigationUpdate the Stars Testimonials plugin to the latest patched version. Until patched, review user permissions and consider removing contributor-level access or disabling the affected shortcode.

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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. Identify if Stars Testimonials plugin is installed
    In WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins and look for 'Stars Testimonials' or check the wp-content/plugins directory for a folder starting with 'stars-testimonials'
    Affected if The plugin 'Stars Testimonials' is found in the plugins list
  2. Determine the installed plugin version
    In WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins, find Stars Testimonials, and note the version number displayed
    Affected if The version cannot be determined or is older than the patched version
  3. Check if vulnerable shortcode is in use
    Search WordPress database for the shortcode 'stars-testimonials-with-slider-and-masonry-grid' in wp_posts table, or use a plugin to scan for shortcodes across posts and pages
    Affected if The shortcode 'stars-testimonials-with-slider-and-masonry-grid' is found in any post, page, or widget content
  4. Review user accounts with contributor-level access
    In WordPress admin, go to Users > All Users and check the Role column for any users with 'Contributor' role, or query wp_users and wp_usermeta tables for user_role_capabilities containing 'contributor'
    Affected if There are one or more users with Contributor role active on the site

If the Stars Testimonials plugin is installed and the vulnerable shortcode is in use, the site is potentially affected; the presence of contributor-level users increases exploitability.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update the Stars Testimonials plugin to the latest patched version. Until patched, review user permissions and consider removing contributor-level access or disabling the affected shortcode.

Recommended fix High confidence

Plugin version 3.3.4 or latest available version

  1. Check current plugin version in WordPress admin under Plugins > Installed Plugins
  2. Update the 'Stars Testimonials' plugin to the latest available version (3.3.4 or later) via WordPress plugin updates, or manually download from wordpress.org/plugins/stars-testimonials-with-slider-and-masonry-grid/
  3. After updating, verify the shortcode 'stars-testimonials-with-slider-and-masonry-grid' functions correctly

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2024-11429 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data