CVE-2025-2164
📋 TL;DR
The pixelstats WordPress plugin contains a reflected cross-site scripting vulnerability in all versions up to 0.8.2. Unauthenticated attackers can inject malicious scripts via 'post_id' and 'sortby' parameters, potentially stealing user credentials or session cookies when victims click crafted links. WordPress sites using vulnerable pixelstats plugin versions are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- WordPress pixelstats plugin
📦 What is this software?
Pixelstats by Pixelstats
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Attackers steal administrator credentials, take over WordPress sites, install backdoors, or redirect visitors to malicious sites.
Likely Case
Attackers steal user session cookies or credentials through phishing links, potentially compromising individual accounts.
If Mitigated
With proper web application firewalls and user awareness training, impact is limited to unsuccessful phishing attempts.
🎯 Exploit Status
Reflected XSS vulnerabilities are commonly weaponized in phishing campaigns due to low technical complexity.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 0.8.3 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://wordpress.org/plugins/pixelstats/
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins. 3. Find pixelstats plugin. 4. Click 'Update Now' if update available. 5. If no update, deactivate and delete plugin, then install latest version from WordPress repository.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Web Application Firewall Rule
allBlock malicious XSS payloads in 'post_id' and 'sortby' parameters
Disable Plugin
linuxTemporarily deactivate pixelstats plugin until patched
wp plugin deactivate pixelstats
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement Content Security Policy headers to restrict script execution
- Use web application firewall with XSS protection rules
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin → Plugins → Installed Plugins for pixelstats version 0.8.2 or earlierCheck Version:
wp plugin list --name=pixelstats --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm pixelstats plugin version is 0.8.3 or later in WordPress admin panel📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual GET requests with script tags in post_id or sortby parameters
- Multiple failed XSS attempts in web server logs
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests containing <script> tags in query parameters
- Suspicious URLs with encoded JavaScript payloads
SIEM Query:
source="web_logs" AND (uri_query="*post_id*<script>*" OR uri_query="*sortby*<script>*")🔗 References
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/pixelstats/tags/0.8.2/pixelstats.php#L331
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/pixelstats/tags/0.8.2/pixelstats.php#L664
- https://wordpress.org/plugins/pixelstats/
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/8683bc00-1136-42c4-a256-84b2cac1d575?source=cve
