CVE-2021-24452: W3 Total Cache < 2.1.5 - Reflected XSS in Extensions Page (JS Context)

Severity: medium (CVSS 6.1 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 1.9% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: yes
Published: 2021-07-19 · updated 2026-06-17
Weakness: CWE-79

Description

The W3 Total Cache WordPress plugin before 2.1.5 was affected by a reflected Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) issue within the "extension" parameter in the Extensions dashboard, when the 'Anonymously track usage to improve product quality' setting is enabled, as the parameter is output in a JavaScript context without proper escaping. This could allow an attacker, who can convince an authenticated admin into clicking a link, to run malicious JavaScript within the user's web browser, which could lead to full site compromise.

Affected products

boldgrid W3 Total Cache: before 2.1.5 — fixed in 2.1.5

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: boldgrid W3 Total Cache 2.1.5. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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