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How CVE-2025-4431 Works
The vulnerability exists in the `fip_save_attach_featured` function of the Featured Image Plus plugin (versions ≤1.6.3) due to missing capability checks. Authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level permissions can exploit this flaw by sending a crafted POST request to `admin-ajax.php` containing a target post ID and new featured image data. The function processes this request without verifying if the user has proper edit permissions, allowing unauthorized modification of any post’s featured image. This could enable content spoofing, SEO manipulation, or disruption of website visuals.
DailyCVE Form
Platform: WordPress
Version: ≤1.6.3
Vulnerability: Missing capability check
Severity: Medium
Date: 06/04/2025
Prediction: Patch by 07/15/2025
What Undercode Say:
Exploitation:
curl -X POST http://target.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php \ -d 'action=fip_save_attach_featured&post_id=123&image_url=http://malicious/image.jpg'
Detection:
SELECT FROM wp_options WHERE option_name LIKE '%featured_image_plus%';
Mitigation:
1. Temporary workaround:
add_filter('ajax_action_fip_save_attach_featured', function(){
if(!current_user_can('edit_posts')) wp_die('Unauthorized');
});
2. WAF Rule:
location ~ admin-ajax.php {
if ($args ~ "action=fip_save_attach_featured") {
set $block 1;
}
if ($remote_user !~ "editor|author|admin") {
return 403;
}
}
Post-Exploit Forensics:
grep "fip_save_attach_featured" /var/log/nginx/access.log | awk '{print $1,$7}'
Patch Verification:
<?php
$plugin_data = get_plugin_data('featured-image-plus/plugin.php');
if(version_compare($plugin_data['Version'], '1.6.4', '<')) {
die('Vulnerable version detected');
}
Sources:
Reported By: nvd.nist.gov
Extra Source Hub:
Undercode
