# CVE-2024-11972: Hunk Companion - Missing Authorization

> Live exploitation tracking for CVE-2024-11972 by the CrowdSec Live Exploit Tracker, built from real-world attack data crowdsourced from CrowdSec's global network.

Page: https://tracker.crowdsec.net/cves/CVE-2024-11972

## Key facts

- **Exploitation phase:** Limited Exploitation. The vulnerability is known but shows very limited attacker interest or exploitation activity.
- **CVSS score:** 9.8
- **Public exploit available:** Yes
- **Affected products:** WordPress Hunk Companion
- **Tags:** wordpress

## Description

The Hunk Companion WordPress plugin before 1.9.0 does not correctly authorize some REST API endpoints, allowing unauthenticated requests to install and activate arbitrary Hunk Companion WordPress plugin before 1.9.0 from the WordPress.org repo, including vulnerable Hunk Companion WordPress plugin before 1.9.0 that have been closed.

## CrowdSec analysis

[CVE-2024-11972](https://euvd.enisa.europa.eu/vulnerability/CVE-2024-11972) is a critical vulnerability in the Hunk Companion WordPress plugin before version 1.9.0, where improper authorization on certain REST API endpoints allows unauthenticated attackers to install and activate arbitrary plugins from the WordPress.org repository. This flaw could be exploited to install vulnerable or malicious plugins, potentially leading to full site compromise, data theft, or further attacks on affected WordPress installations.

CrowdSec has been tracking this vulnerability and its exploits since 24th of September 2025.

Insights from the CrowdSec network reveal that the attackers trying to exploit CVE-2024-11972 are composed of a fairly even mix of opportunistic and targeted actors. Some attackers employ preliminary reconnaissance, while others use indiscriminate scanning.
Telemetry from the CrowdSec network also shows that exploitation activity for CVE-2024-11972 remains steady week-over-week. Attack volumes are consistent with long-term trends, indicating sustained interest from threat actors. CVE-2024-11972 continues to be an active part of the threat landscape and will likely remain this way for the forseeable future.

Attackers exploit unauthenticated POST requests to the `/wp-json/hc/v1/themehunk-import` REST API endpoint, allowing arbitrary plugin installation and activation on vulnerable WordPress sites.

## Timeline

- 2024-12-31: CVE Published. CVE-2024-11972 is published to NVD.
- 2025-09-24: Rule Released. CrowdSec releases a rule to detect CVE-2024-11972 exploitation attempts against the CrowdSec Network.
- 2025-09-25: CrowdSec First Seen. CrowdSec observes in-the-wild exploitation of CVE-2024-11972 for the first time.

## References

- https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/4963560b-e4ae-451d-8f94-482779c415e4/
- https://github.com/projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates/blob/main/http/cves/2024/CVE-2024-11972.yaml

## Live exploitation data

The [Live Exploit Tracker page](https://tracker.crowdsec.net/cves/CVE-2024-11972) follows observed exploitation activity for CVE-2024-11972. [Request an API key](https://tracker.crowdsec.net/request-api-key) for full access to its exploitation timeline, attacking IP addresses and blocklists.