CVE-2025-62116

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-62116 is a Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Quadlayers AI Copilot WordPress plugin, affecting versions from n/a through 1.5.5. This flaw allows an unauthenticated attacker to exploit incorrectly configured access control security levels, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive data or functionality. The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium) and an EPSS score of 0.0%, indicating low exploitation likelihood at this time. No public proof-of-concept (PoC) or exploit code has been released, and no official patch is available from the vendor.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability affects a WordPress plugin distributed via the official WordPress plugin repository. Organizations using the AI Copilot plugin should treat this as a supply chain risk, as the plugin may be included in managed WordPress environments or custom builds. No known malicious packages have been identified, but the lack of a patch increases the risk of supply chain compromise if the plugin is used in production.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Score: 5.3 (Medium)
• Attack Vector: Network (AV:N)
• Attack Complexity: Low (AC:L)
• Privileges Required: None (PR:N)
• User Interaction: None (UI:N)
• Scope: Unchanged (S:U)
• Confidentiality Impact: Low (C:L)
• Integrity Impact: None (I:N)
• Availability Impact: None (A:N)

Threat Level: Medium. The vulnerability is exploitable remotely without authentication, but the impact is limited to low confidentiality loss. The lack of public exploits and low EPSS score reduces immediate risk, but the absence of a patch makes it a persistent threat.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability resides in the AI Copilot plugin's access control mechanisms. The plugin fails to properly validate user permissions when processing certain REST API requests or AJAX actions. Specifically, the ai-copilot plugin exposes endpoints that should require administrative privileges but are accessible to unauthenticated users. This allows an attacker to:

• Retrieve sensitive configuration data (e.g., API keys, model settings).
• Access logs or other internal plugin data.
• Potentially trigger actions intended for authenticated users.

The root cause is a missing current_user_can() check or similar authorization hook in the plugin's callback functions. The plugin likely registers REST API routes or AJAX handlers without verifying the user's role or capability.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Since no patch is available, the following is a hypothetical comparison based on common WordPress authorization patterns.

Vulnerable Code (version <= 1.5.5):

add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_ai_copilot_get_config', 'ai_copilot_get_config');
function ai_copilot_get_config() {
    // No authorization check
    $config = get_option('ai_copilot_settings');
    wp_send_json_success($config);
}

Patched Code (hypothetical):

add_action('wp_ajax_ai_copilot_get_config', 'ai_copilot_get_config');
add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_ai_copilot_get_config', 'ai_copilot_get_config_unauthorized');
function ai_copilot_get_config() {
    if (!current_user_can('manage_options')) {
        wp_send_json_error('Unauthorized', 403);
        return;
    }
    $config = get_option('ai_copilot_settings');
    wp_send_json_success($config);
}
function ai_copilot_get_config_unauthorized() {
    wp_send_json_error('Authentication required', 401);
}

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team

Prerequisites:

• Target WordPress site with AI Copilot plugin <= 1.5.5 installed and activated.
• Network access to the target.

Exploitation Steps:

1. Identify the vulnerable endpoint. Common patterns include /wp-json/ai-copilot/v1/config or /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php?action=ai_copilot_get_config.
2. Send an unauthenticated GET request to the endpoint.
3. If successful, the response will contain sensitive plugin data.

Example using cURL:

curl -X GET "http://target.com/wp-json/ai-copilot/v1/config" -H "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0"

Example using Python:

import requests
url = "http://target.com/wp-json/ai-copilot/v1/config"
response = requests.get(url)
if response.status_code == 200:
    print(response.json())

Blue Team

Detection:

• Monitor for unusual requests to /wp-json/ai-copilot/ or admin-ajax.php with action=ai_copilot_* from unauthenticated sources.
• Look for spikes in 200 responses to these endpoints without prior authentication.

Mitigation:

• Immediately disable the AI Copilot plugin if not essential.
• Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block access to /wp-json/ai-copilot/ for unauthenticated users.
• Apply a virtual patch using a security plugin like Wordfence or Sucuri.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:

  • HTTP requests to /wp-json/ai-copilot/v1/config or similar endpoints.
  • HTTP requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with action=ai_copilot_* parameters.
  • Source IP addresses making repeated unauthenticated requests to these endpoints.

• File IOCs:

  • Modified plugin files in /wp-content/plugins/ai-copilot/ (if attacker gains write access).
  • Suspicious log entries in /wp-content/debug.log or server access logs.

• Behavioral IOCs:

  • Unauthorized access to plugin settings or configuration data.
  • Unexpected changes to plugin options in the database (e.g., wp_options table with ai_copilot_ prefix).

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_62116_AI_Copilot_Missing_Auth {
    meta:
        description = "Detects exploitation attempts of CVE-2025-62116 in AI Copilot plugin"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-62116"
    strings:
        $s1 = "ai-copilot" nocase
        $s2 = "wp-json/ai-copilot" nocase
        $s3 = "admin-ajax.php?action=ai_copilot" nocase
    condition:
        any of ($s*) and #s1 > 0
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2025-62116 - AI Copilot Missing Authorization Exploitation
id: 8a4b3c2d-1e5f-6a7b-8c9d-0e1f2a3b4c5d
status: experimental
description: Detects unauthenticated access attempts to AI Copilot plugin endpoints
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
    service: access
detection:
    selection:
        cs-method: 'GET'
        cs-uri-query|contains:
            - '/wp-json/ai-copilot/'
            - 'action=ai_copilot_'
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate admin users accessing the plugin (should be authenticated)
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-62116 - AI Copilot Missing Authorization Exploitation"; flow:to_server,established; content:"GET"; http_method; content:"/wp-json/ai-copilot/"; http_uri; nocase; content:"/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php"; http_uri; nocase; content:"action=ai_copilot_"; http_uri; nocase; classtype:attempted-recon; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Disable the plugin if it is not critical for operations.
2. Apply a virtual patch using a WAF or security plugin to block unauthenticated access to /wp-json/ai-copilot/ and admin-ajax.php with action=ai_copilot_* parameters.
3. Monitor logs for any signs of exploitation.

Long-term Fix:

• The vendor must release a patched version that includes proper authorization checks (e.g., current_user_can()).
• Until a patch is available, consider replacing the plugin with an alternative that has similar functionality but is actively maintained.

Workaround:

• Add the following code to the theme's functions.php file to block unauthenticated access to the vulnerable endpoints:

add_action('init', function() {
    if (defined('REST_REQUEST') && REST_REQUEST) {
        $route = $GLOBALS['wp']->query_vars['rest_route'];
        if (strpos($route, '/ai-copilot/') !== false && !is_user_logged_in()) {
            wp_die('Unauthorized', 403);
        }
    }
});

Valters IT