CVE-2025-23577
📋 TL;DR
This CSRF vulnerability in the Word Freshener WordPress plugin allows attackers to trick authenticated administrators into performing actions that inject malicious scripts. When exploited, it leads to stored XSS where the malicious scripts persist on the website. All WordPress sites using Word Freshener versions up to 1.3 are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- WordPress Word Freshener 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 inject persistent malicious scripts that steal admin credentials, deface websites, redirect visitors to malicious sites, or install backdoors for further compromise.
Likely Case
Attackers would typically inject scripts to steal session cookies or admin credentials, potentially gaining full control of the WordPress site.
If Mitigated
With proper CSRF protections and content security policies, the attack would fail or have limited impact.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires social engineering to trick authenticated admin users into clicking malicious links. No public exploit code available.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Version after 1.3
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins. 3. Find Word Freshener plugin. 4. Click 'Update Now' if update available. 5. If no update available, deactivate and delete the plugin immediately.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Implement CSRF Protection
allAdd CSRF tokens to all admin forms and validate them on submission
Content Security Policy
allImplement strict CSP headers to prevent XSS execution
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Deactivate and remove the Word Freshener plugin immediately
- Implement web application firewall rules to block CSRF attempts and XSS payloads
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin panel > Plugins > Installed Plugins for Word Freshener versionCheck Version:
wp plugin list --name=word-freshener --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify Word Freshener plugin is either updated to version after 1.3 or completely removed📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual admin actions from unexpected IPs
- Multiple failed CSRF token validations
- Suspicious POST requests to admin-ajax.php
Network Indicators:
- CSRF attack patterns in web server logs
- Malicious script injections in database content
SIEM Query:
source="web_server" AND (uri="/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php" OR uri CONTAINS "word-freshener") AND status=200 AND method="POST"