CVE-2025-5588
📋 TL;DR
The Image Editor by Pixo WordPress plugin has a stored XSS vulnerability in the 'download' parameter that allows authenticated attackers with Contributor access or higher to inject malicious scripts. These scripts execute when users view compromised pages, potentially affecting all visitors to vulnerable WordPress sites.
💻 Affected Systems
- Image Editor by Pixo 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 admin credentials, deface websites, redirect users to malicious sites, or install backdoors for persistent access.
Likely Case
Attackers with contributor accounts inject malicious scripts to steal session cookies or redirect users to phishing pages.
If Mitigated
With proper input validation and output escaping, the vulnerability would be prevented entirely.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires authenticated access but is technically simple once an attacker has contributor credentials.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 2.3.7 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://wordpress.org/plugins/image-editor-by-pixo/#developers
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Log into WordPress admin panel. 2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins. 3. Find 'Image Editor by Pixo' and click 'Update Now'. 4. Verify version is 2.3.7 or higher.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable Plugin
allTemporarily disable the vulnerable plugin until patched
wp plugin deactivate image-editor-by-pixo
Restrict Contributor Access
linuxTemporarily remove contributor roles or restrict their capabilities
wp user list --role=contributor --field=ID | xargs wp user set-role subscriber
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block XSS payloads in the download parameter
- Enable WordPress security plugins with XSS protection features
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check WordPress admin panel → Plugins → Image Editor by Pixo → Version number. If version is 2.3.6 or lower, you are vulnerable.Check Version:
wp plugin get image-editor-by-pixo --field=versionVerify Fix Applied:
After updating, verify version is 2.3.7 or higher in WordPress admin panel.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual POST requests to frontend.php with download parameter containing script tags
- Multiple failed login attempts followed by successful contributor login
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests with suspicious JavaScript in download parameter
- Outbound connections to unknown domains after page loads
SIEM Query:
source="wordpress.log" AND "frontend.php" AND "download=" AND ("<script>" OR "javascript:" OR "onerror=" OR "onload=")🔗 References
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/image-editor-by-pixo/trunk/frontend.php#L42
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset/3315303/
- https://wordpress.org/plugins/image-editor-by-pixo/#developers
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/1036a34d-ec03-4bec-8455-02c83fdb8b36?source=cve
