dbcve.org
SQL InjectionWeakness · CWE-89

CVE-2024-12473

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-01-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
71/100
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
The AI Scribe – SEO AI Writer, Content Generator, Humanizer, Blog Writer, SEO Optimizer, DALLE-3, AI WordPress Plugin ChatGPT (GPT-4o 128K) plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to SQL Injection via the 'template_id' parameter of the 'article_builder_generate_data' shortcode in all versions up to, and including, 2.5 due to insufficient escaping on the user supplied parameter and lack of sufficient preparation on the existing SQL query. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Contributor-level access and above, to append additional SQL queries into already existing queries that can be used to extract sensitive information from the database.

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

The AI Scribe WordPress plugin fails to sanitize the template_id parameter in the article_builder_generate_data shortcode, allowing authenticated Contributors+ to inject arbitrary SQL queries. The parameter is directly interpolated into an SQL query without using $wpdb->prepare() or proper escaping.

MitigationUpdate to version 2.6 or later which patches the SQL injection, or manually add $wpdb->prepare() with proper placeholder escaping around the template_id variable in the shortcode handler.

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
None
Availability
None

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

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

  1. Verify AI Scribe plugin is installed
    Check the WordPress plugins directory (wp-content/plugins/) for an ai-scribe or similar folder, or view the installed plugins list in the WordPress admin under Plugins > Installed Plugins
    Affected if The AI Scribe plugin appears in the installed plugins list or filesystem
  2. Determine the installed plugin version
    Open the main plugin file (usually ai-scribe.php or similar in the plugin folder) and locate the Version header comment, or check the version displayed in the WordPress plugins admin page
    Affected if The plugin version is listed as below 2.6 or if no version is displayed and the plugin code appears unpatched
  3. Locate the vulnerable shortcode handler
    Search the plugin files for the string 'article_builder_generate_data' to find where the shortcode is registered and its handler function
    Affected if The shortcode handler function exists in the plugin code
  4. Inspect the SQL query for the vulnerability pattern
    Examine the shortcode handler code for direct interpolation of the template_id parameter into an SQL query (look for '$template_id' inside a raw SQL SELECT statement without $wpdb->prepare() or parameterized queries)
    Affected if The code contains a SQL query that uses the template_id parameter directly without using $wpdb->prepare() or placeholders
  5. Identify users with Contributor or higher access
    In WordPress admin, go to Users > All Users and review the role column, or query the wp_usermeta table for users with roles of 'contributor' or higher
    Affected if There are one or more users assigned the Contributor role, Author, Editor, or Administrator who could execute the shortcode

A user is affected if the AI Scribe plugin is installed with a version below 2.6, the article_builder_generate_data shortcode processes the template_id parameter directly in SQL without prepare(), and at least one Contributor+ user exists on the site.

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 to version 2.6 or later which patches the SQL injection, or manually add $wpdb->prepare() with proper placeholder escaping around the template_id variable in the shortcode handler.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Version higher than 2.5 (the description indicates versions up to and including 2.5 are vulnerable)

  1. 1. Update the AI Scribe plugin to the latest available version from the WordPress plugin repository
  2. 2. After updating, verify that the 'article_builder_generate_data' shortcode functions correctly
  3. 3. Confirm the fix by checking that the 'template_id' parameter is now properly escaped in SQL queries

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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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-2024-12473 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