CVE-2025-49288
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows attackers to bypass authorization controls in the Ultimate WP Mail WordPress plugin, potentially accessing administrative functions without proper permissions. It affects all WordPress sites running Ultimate WP Mail version 1.3.5 or earlier. The vulnerability stems from missing access control checks on certain plugin endpoints.
💻 Affected Systems
- Ultimate WP Mail 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 gain administrative access to the WordPress site, modify email settings, access sensitive email data, or potentially escalate privileges to compromise the entire WordPress installation.
Likely Case
Unauthorized users accessing plugin functionality they shouldn't have access to, potentially modifying email configurations or viewing email-related data.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper network segmentation and additional authentication layers, though the vulnerability would still exist at the application level.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires some WordPress access but not necessarily administrative privileges. The vulnerability is in access control logic rather than complex technical flaws.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 1.3.6 or later
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins. 3. Find Ultimate WP Mail and click 'Update Now'. 4. Verify update to version 1.3.6 or later. 5. Clear any caching plugins if used.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Plugin
allTemporarily disable the Ultimate WP Mail plugin until patched
wp plugin deactivate ultimate-wp-mail
Restrict Plugin Access
linuxUse web application firewall rules to restrict access to plugin endpoints
# Example .htaccess rule for Apache:
# Deny from all to wp-content/plugins/ultimate-wp-mail/
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict network access controls to limit who can access the WordPress admin interface
- Add additional authentication layers (2FA) for all WordPress users and monitor for unauthorized access attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin → Plugins → Installed Plugins for Ultimate WP Mail version. If version is 1.3.5 or earlier, you are vulnerable.Check Version:
wp plugin list --name='ultimate-wp-mail' --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
After updating, verify the plugin shows version 1.3.6 or later in WordPress admin panel.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual access patterns to /wp-content/plugins/ultimate-wp-mail/ endpoints
- Unauthorized users accessing plugin-specific admin pages
- Failed authorization attempts followed by successful access
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests to Ultimate WP Mail endpoints from unauthorized IP addresses
- Unusual POST requests to plugin admin-ajax.php endpoints
SIEM Query:
source="wordpress.log" AND ("ultimate-wp-mail" OR "uwpm") AND ("admin" OR "ajax") AND status=200 AND user_role!=administrator