CVE-2025-53349
📋 TL;DR
This is a reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Kalium WordPress theme that allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages. When exploited, it can lead to session hijacking, credential theft, or redirection to malicious sites. All WordPress sites using Kalium theme versions up to and including 3.18.3 are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- WordPress Kalium Theme
⚠️ 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 steal administrator credentials, take over the WordPress site, install backdoors, and compromise all user data.
Likely Case
Attackers steal user session cookies, perform actions as authenticated users, or redirect users to phishing sites.
If Mitigated
With proper input validation and output encoding, malicious scripts are neutralized before execution.
🎯 Exploit Status
Reflected XSS typically requires user interaction (clicking malicious link) but is straightforward to exploit once the vulnerable parameter is identified.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Version after 3.18.3
Vendor Advisory: https://patchstack.com/database/Wordpress/Theme/kalium/vulnerability/wordpress-kalium-theme-3-18-3-cross-site-scripting-xss-vulnerability?_s_id=cve
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Appearance > Themes. 3. Check if Kalium theme update is available. 4. Click 'Update Now' for Kalium theme. 5. Verify theme version is above 3.18.3.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Web Application Firewall (WAF)
allDeploy a WAF with XSS protection rules to filter malicious input before it reaches the application.
Input Validation Filter
allImplement custom input validation in WordPress functions.php to sanitize all user inputs.
add_filter('sanitize_text_field', 'custom_xss_filter');
function custom_xss_filter($input) { return htmlspecialchars($input, ENT_QUOTES, 'UTF-8'); }
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Disable the Kalium theme and switch to a secure alternative theme immediately.
- Implement strict Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to restrict script execution sources.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin panel > Appearance > Themes > Kalium theme details for version number.Check Version:
wp theme list --field=name,version --status=activeVerify Fix Applied:
After updating, verify Kalium theme version is above 3.18.3 in WordPress admin panel.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual long parameter values in web server logs
- Requests containing script tags or JavaScript code in URL parameters
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests with suspicious parameters containing <script> tags or JavaScript functions
SIEM Query:
source="web_server" AND (url="*<script>*" OR url="*javascript:*" OR url="*onload=*" OR url="*onerror=*")