CVE-2025-12168: Phrase TMS WordPress Auth Bypass Flaw

CVE-2025-12168 Overview

The Phrase TMS Integration for WordPress plugin is vulnerable to unauthorized modification of data due to a missing capability check on the wp_ajax_delete_log AJAX endpoint. This Broken Access Control vulnerability (CWE-862) affects all versions up to and including 4.7.5, allowing authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access or higher to delete log files without proper authorization.

Critical Impact

Authenticated users with minimal privileges (Subscriber role) can delete plugin log files, potentially covering tracks of malicious activity or disrupting audit trails on affected WordPress installations.

Affected Products

• Phrase TMS Integration for WordPress plugin versions up to and including 4.7.5
• WordPress installations running vulnerable plugin versions
• Sites allowing user registration with Subscriber-level access

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-01-17 - CVE-2025-12168 published to NVD
• 2026-01-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-12168

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability stems from a Missing Authorization weakness (CWE-862) in the Phrase TMS Integration plugin's AJAX handling. The wp_ajax_delete_log endpoint fails to implement proper capability checks before executing log deletion operations. In WordPress, AJAX actions registered with the wp_ajax_ prefix are accessible to any authenticated user by default, making capability verification essential for privilege-sensitive operations.

The vulnerability allows attackers with low-privilege accounts (Subscriber level and above) to invoke the log deletion functionality that should be restricted to administrators. This represents a classic broken access control scenario where authentication is verified but authorization is not enforced.

Root Cause

The root cause is the absence of a WordPress capability check function (such as current_user_can()) within the AJAX handler for the wp_ajax_delete_log action. Without this authorization gate, any authenticated user can access the endpoint regardless of their assigned role or capabilities.

WordPress provides role-based access control through its capabilities system, but plugin developers must explicitly implement these checks. The vulnerable code processes log deletion requests without verifying that the requesting user has administrative privileges.

Attack Vector

An authenticated attacker with Subscriber-level access can exploit this vulnerability through the following mechanism:

1. The attacker creates or compromises a WordPress account with minimal privileges (Subscriber role)
2. The attacker crafts an AJAX POST request to the admin-ajax.php endpoint with the action parameter set to delete_log
3. The vulnerable endpoint processes the request without checking user capabilities
4. Log files are deleted, potentially removing evidence of malicious activity or plugin operations

The attack requires network access to the WordPress installation and valid authentication credentials for any registered user role. No additional user interaction is required beyond the initial request.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-12168

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected deletions of plugin log files in the Phrase TMS Integration plugin directory
• AJAX requests to admin-ajax.php with action=delete_log from non-administrative users
• Missing or truncated log entries in the plugin's logging system
• Suspicious activity from Subscriber-level accounts accessing administrative AJAX endpoints

Detection Strategies

• Monitor WordPress AJAX requests for delete_log action calls from low-privilege user accounts
• Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect unauthorized access patterns to sensitive AJAX endpoints
• Review access logs for admin-ajax.php requests with suspicious action parameters from authenticated sessions
• Enable verbose logging to capture authorization failures and unexpected endpoint access attempts

Monitoring Recommendations

• Configure centralized logging for WordPress installations to detect log file manipulation
• Set up alerts for file system changes in plugin directories, particularly log file deletions
• Monitor user activity logs for Subscriber-level accounts performing administrative actions
• Implement integrity monitoring for plugin log files to detect unauthorized modifications or deletions

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-12168

Immediate Actions Required

• Update the Phrase TMS Integration plugin to the latest patched version immediately
• Review user accounts and remove unnecessary Subscriber-level access where possible
• Audit recent activity logs to identify potential exploitation attempts
• Consider temporarily disabling user registration if not required for site operations

Patch Information

A security patch addressing this vulnerability is available through the official WordPress plugin repository. Review the WordPress Plugin Change Log for specific code changes. Additional vulnerability details are available in the Wordfence Vulnerability Report.

Administrators should update to a version newer than 4.7.5 which includes proper capability checks on the affected AJAX endpoint.

Workarounds

• Restrict user registration to trusted users only until the plugin is updated
• Implement additional access controls via security plugins that can filter AJAX requests
• Use a web application firewall to block unauthorized requests to the delete_log AJAX action
• Consider temporarily deactivating the plugin if log integrity is critical and updates cannot be applied immediately

# WordPress CLI command to update the plugin
wp plugin update memsource-connector

# Verify the installed version after update
wp plugin list --name=memsource-connector --fields=name,version,update_version

# List users with Subscriber role for audit
wp user list --role=subscriber --fields=ID,user_login,user_email