Author: Dmitrii I

The WordPress ecosystem is vast, with thousands of plugins extending its core functionality. However, the flexibility of these plugins can come at the cost of security if developers don’t adhere to strict input sanitization and output escaping practices. One such vulnerability was discovered in the popular Newsletter plugin, which is installed on over 300,000 websites. The issue, now identified as CVE-2025-3583, allows for Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) that can be weaponized into a JavaScript backdoor, enabling attackers to hijack administrator accounts and compromise the entire site.

In the modern WordPress ecosystem, the principle of least privilege is critical for maintaining site security. It ensures that users can only perform actions strictly necessary for their roles. However, when plugins break this fundamental principle, even seemingly harmless user roles such as “Contributor” can exploit the system and execute powerful administrative actions. This is precisely the case with CVE-2025-3471—a Broken Access Control vulnerability discovered in the SureForms plugin.

SureForms is a powerful and widely adopted WordPress plugin used for creating customizable forms. With over 200,000 active installations, it is trusted by site administrators for building contact, feedback, and survey forms with ease. However, during a recent plugin assessment, a critical vulnerability was uncovered — a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) flaw — which allows malicious JavaScript injection through form field attributes. This vulnerability can be exploited by an editor to trigger a JavaScript backdoor, potentially leading to full administrative compromise.

SureForms is a widely used WordPress plugin for creating custom forms with a drag-and-drop interface. With over 200,000 active installations, it powers contact forms, feedback tools, and opt-in flows on thousands of websites. During a recent security audit, a critical vulnerability — Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) — was identified. This flaw enables a user with editor-level privileges to inject persistent JavaScript into the form confirmation message. When exploited, this vulnerability can lead to JavaScript backdoor creation and full admin account takeover.

The WP Maps plugin is a popular solution for adding interactive maps to WordPress sites, boasting over 80,000 installations. However, during a security assessment, a severe vulnerability was discovered — a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) flaw that can be leveraged by an attacker with editor privileges to inject persistent JavaScript code. This code is later executed in the context of an administrator, potentially resulting in full site takeover.

The WP Maps plugin for WordPress, with over 80,000 active installations, provides an easy interface for users to create interactive maps on their websites. However, in the course of a routine security assessment, a serious vulnerability was identified — CVE-2025-3503. This vulnerability allows users with editor-level access or higher to inject persistent JavaScript code (Stored XSS) into map content, opening the door to the creation of a backdoor and full account compromise.

The WordPress ecosystem, with its massive collection of third-party plugins, remains a fertile ground for both innovation and security concerns. One such concern has emerged in the popular WP Maps plugin, which boasts over 80,000 active installations. This plugin, designed to help users create interactive maps on their websites, contains a critical vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-3502. The vulnerability allows for the execution of stored cross-site scripting (XSS) payloads, ultimately enabling the creation of JavaScript-based backdoors. This vulnerability is particularly concerning due to its low exploitation threshold and the fact that it can be triggered even by users with limited privileges, such as editors.

The Calculated Fields Form plugin is a widely adopted WordPress tool used for creating forms with dynamically calculated fields based on user input. With over 50,000 active installations, it powers various contact forms, booking interfaces, quote generators, and more. Despite its powerful features, a significant security vulnerability has been discovered: CVE-2024-12273, a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) flaw that can be leveraged by an attacker to inject persistent JavaScript code and deploy a full JavaScript-based backdoor. This allows account takeover and, in worst-case scenarios, full administrative compromise.

AI Autotagger (Taxo Press) is a popular plugin used in WordPress for automatically tagging posts and improving the content classification process. It helps users to efficiently manage taxonomies and tags across their site, saving time and improving content visibility. However, a critical vulnerability, CVE-2025-0627, was discovered in the plugin, which allows attackers to inject malicious scripts, enabling a backdoor creation that can lead to account takeover. This vulnerability is a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) flaw that can be exploited by users with editor privileges.

The Category Posts Widget is a popular WordPress plugin that allows users to display posts from specified categories in a widget format. It is often used to enhance the user experience by providing dynamic content related to specific categories. However, a critical vulnerability has been discovered—CVE-2025-1453—that allows attackers to exploit stored XSS within the widget’s settings. This vulnerability enables attackers with editor-level permissions to inject malicious JavaScript, leading to potential backdoor creation and full account takeover.