CVE-2025-13694
📋 TL;DR
The AA Block Country WordPress plugin versions up to 1.0.1 trust user-supplied HTTP headers like X-Forwarded-For to determine client IP addresses without proper validation. This allows unauthenticated attackers to spoof their IP address and bypass IP-based access restrictions. WordPress sites using vulnerable versions of this plugin are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- AA Block Country WordPress Plugin
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Attackers bypass all IP-based country blocking, gaining access to restricted content or functionality intended for specific geographic regions.
Likely Case
Attackers bypass country restrictions to access content or features they shouldn't have access to based on their actual geographic location.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact if proper proxy validation is implemented or if IP-based restrictions are not critical to security.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires only modifying HTTP headers, making it trivial for attackers with basic web knowledge.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Check WordPress plugin repository for latest version
Vendor Advisory: https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/aa-block-country/
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel
2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
3. Find AA Block Country plugin
4. Click 'Update Now' if update available
5. If no update available, consider disabling or removing the plugin
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Implement Proper IP Validation
allModify plugin code to validate proxy headers or use server's REMOTE_ADDR variable instead of trusting user-supplied headers.
Edit aablockcountry.php line 26 (or similar) to use $_SERVER['REMOTE_ADDR'] instead of $_SERVER['HTTP_X_FORWARDED_FOR']
Use Web Application Firewall
allConfigure WAF to strip or validate X-Forwarded-For headers before they reach WordPress.
Depends on specific WAF (Cloudflare, ModSecurity, etc.)
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Disable the AA Block Country plugin immediately
- Implement alternative IP-based blocking at the web server or firewall level
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin panel > Plugins > Installed Plugins for AA Block Country version 1.0.1 or earlierCheck Version:
WordPress admin panel or check wp-content/plugins/aa-block-country/aablockcountry.php headerVerify Fix Applied:
After update, verify plugin version is higher than 1.0.1 and test IP blocking functionality with spoofed headers📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Multiple failed access attempts from same IP with different X-Forwarded-For headers
- Access from IP addresses that should be blocked by country restrictions
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests with manipulated X-Forwarded-For headers to WordPress sites
SIEM Query:
web_access_logs | where url contains "wp-content/plugins/aa-block-country" | where http_headers contains "X-Forwarded-For" | group by source_ip, x_forwarded_for