CVE-2025-13889
📋 TL;DR
The Simple Nivo Slider WordPress plugin has a stored XSS vulnerability that allows authenticated attackers with Contributor access or higher to inject malicious scripts via the 'id' shortcode parameter. These scripts execute whenever users view compromised pages, potentially affecting all visitors to vulnerable WordPress sites.
💻 Affected Systems
- Simple Nivo Slider 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 could steal session cookies, redirect users to malicious sites, deface websites, or perform actions on behalf of authenticated users.
Likely Case
Attackers with contributor access inject malicious scripts to steal admin credentials or redirect users to phishing sites.
If Mitigated
With proper input validation and output escaping, no script injection would occur.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires authenticated access but is technically simple once access is obtained.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 0.5.7 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/simple-nivo-slider
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins. 3. Find Simple Nivo Slider. 4. Click 'Update Now' if available. 5. If no update appears, manually download version 0.5.7+ from WordPress.org and replace plugin files.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Plugin
allTemporarily disable the vulnerable plugin until patched
wp plugin deactivate simple-nivo-slider
Restrict User Roles
allRemove Contributor and higher access from untrusted users
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Remove Contributor and higher access from all untrusted users
- Implement web application firewall rules to block XSS payloads in 'id' parameters
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin panel > Plugins > Simple Nivo Slider version. If version is 0.5.6 or lower, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
wp plugin get simple-nivo-slider --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm plugin version is 0.5.7 or higher in WordPress admin panel.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual POST requests to wp-admin with 'id' parameters containing script tags
- Multiple failed login attempts followed by successful Contributor-level login
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests containing script tags in 'id' parameters
- Outbound connections to suspicious domains from WordPress pages
SIEM Query:
source="wordpress" AND ("id=<script" OR "id=javascript:")🔗 References
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/simple-nivo-slider/tags/0.5.6/simple-nivo-slider.php#L208
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/simple-nivo-slider/trunk/simple-nivo-slider.php#L208
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/0c1c343c-ef16-4468-a983-0dc9fd152dd5?source=cve
