Overview
A stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability, identified as CVE-2025-11765, has been discovered in the Stock Tools plugin for WordPress. All versions up to and including 1.1 are affected. This vulnerability allows authenticated attackers with contributor-level access or higher to inject malicious JavaScript code into pages. When a user visits a page containing the injected script, the script executes, potentially leading to session hijacking, account compromise, or defacement of the website.
Technical Details
The vulnerability stems from insufficient input sanitization and output escaping of the image_height and image_width shortcode attributes. Specifically, the Stock Tools plugin fails to properly validate or encode user-supplied data used within these attributes. This allows an attacker to craft a malicious shortcode containing JavaScript code, inject it into a page or post, and trigger its execution when the page is viewed by other users. The vulnerable code can be found within the stock-tools.php file of the plugin.
Example of a vulnerable shortcode injection:
[stock_image image_height="<img src=x onerror=alert('XSS')>" image_width="200" stock_id="AAPL"]CVSS Analysis
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) assigns a score of 6.4 (Medium) to CVE-2025-11765. The CVSS vector string is likely something along the lines of AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N. This reflects the following:
- Attack Vector (AV:N): Network. The attack can be launched remotely.
- Attack Complexity (AC:L): Low. The attack is easily executable.
- Privileges Required (PR:L): Low. Requires contributor level privileges.
- User Interaction (UI:R): Required. Requires a user to interact with the injected code (e.g., viewing the page).
- Scope (S:C): Changed. The vulnerability affects resources beyond the attacker’s control.
- Confidentiality Impact (C:L): Limited. Some confidential information can be accessed.
- Integrity Impact (I:L): Limited. Website data can be modified.
- Availability Impact (A:N): None. The vulnerability does not affect system availability.
Possible Impact
Successful exploitation of this vulnerability can have several significant consequences:
- Account Takeover: An attacker could potentially steal administrator cookies and gain complete control of the WordPress site.
- Website Defacement: The injected script could modify the content of the website, displaying misleading information or malicious advertisements.
- Malware Distribution: The attacker could use the vulnerability to redirect users to malicious websites, distributing malware.
- Data Theft: Sensitive data, such as user credentials or personal information, could be harvested by the injected script.
Mitigation or Patch Steps
- Update the Plugin (If Available): The most effective mitigation is to update the Stock Tools plugin to a version that addresses the vulnerability. Check the WordPress plugin repository or the plugin developer’s website for updates. As of this writing, there is no known patch released. If a patch is available, apply it immediately.
- Disable the Plugin: If an update is not available, temporarily disable the Stock Tools plugin until a patched version is released. This will prevent attackers from exploiting the vulnerability.
- Web Application Firewall (WAF): Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with rules to detect and block XSS attacks targeting the Stock Tools plugin. This provides an additional layer of protection.
- User Input Sanitization: If you are a developer, ensure all user inputs are properly sanitized and output is properly encoded to prevent XSS vulnerabilities in your code. Utilize WordPress’s built-in functions for data validation and escaping.
- Regular Security Audits: Conduct regular security audits of your WordPress site, including plugins and themes, to identify and address potential vulnerabilities.
References
- CVE ID: CVE-2025-11765
- Plugin Source Code (Vulnerable Version): stock-tools.php on WordPress Trac
- Wordfence Threat Intelligence: Wordfence Analysis of CVE-2025-11765
