# CVE-2024-9638: Category Posts Widget < 4.9.18 - Admin+ Stored XSS

> Admins can inject malicious scripts via widget settings in multisite setups, leading to stored XSS attacks.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 7 Jan 2025
- **Updated:** 7 Jan 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-w573-j2v8-vx6p

## What is CVE-2024-9638?

CVE-2024-9638 is a medium-severity cross-site scripting vulnerability in Unknown Category Posts Widget, published on 7 Jan 2025. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

The Category Posts Widget WordPress plugin before 4.9.18 does not sanitise and escape some of its settings, which could allow high privilege users such as admin to perform Stored Cross-Site Scripting attacks even when the unfiltered_html capability is disallowed (for example in multisite setup).

Weakness: CWE-79 (Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-9638?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Zephyrwest Category Posts Widget.

## How do I fix CVE-2024-9638?

No fix has been published for CVE-2024-9638 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2024-9638 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2024-9638 exists.

## Other vulnerabilities in Unknown Category Posts Widget

- [CVE-2025-1453](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-1453/): Category Posts Widget < 4.9.20 - Admin+ Stored XSS (medium 4.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2024-9638 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-9638 is a medium-severity cross-site scripting vulnerability in Unknown Category Posts Widget, published on 7 Jan 2025. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2024-9638 exists.

Affected product: Unknown Category Posts Widget. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9638/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9638/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-9638
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-9638
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-9638

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9638/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.