CVE-2025-13001: Donation WordPress Plugin SQLi Vulnerability

CVE-2025-13001 Overview

CVE-2025-13001 is a SQL Injection vulnerability affecting the WordPress donation plugin through version 1.0. The vulnerability exists because the plugin does not properly sanitize and escape a parameter before using it in a SQL statement. This allows high privilege users, such as administrators, to perform SQL injection attacks against the underlying database.

Critical Impact

Authenticated attackers with administrator privileges can leverage this SQL injection vulnerability to extract sensitive information from the WordPress database, potentially compromising user credentials, personal data, and other confidential information stored within the system.

Affected Products

• WordPress donation plugin through version 1.0

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-12-02 - CVE-2025-13001 published to NVD
• 2025-12-02 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-13001

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as a SQL Injection (SQLi) flaw with a CVSS v3.1 score of 4.1 (Medium severity). The CVSS vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:N/A:N, indicating:

• Attack Vector (AV:N): Network-accessible, meaning the vulnerability can be exploited remotely
• Attack Complexity (AC:L): Low complexity required to exploit
• Privileges Required (PR:H): High privileges (administrator access) are required
• User Interaction (UI:N): No user interaction needed
• Scope (S:C): Changed scope, indicating potential impact beyond the vulnerable component
• Confidentiality Impact (C:L): Low confidentiality impact
• Integrity Impact (I:N): No integrity impact
• Availability Impact (A:N): No availability impact

The EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score is 0.028% with a percentile of 7.179, suggesting a relatively low probability of exploitation in the wild.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability lies in improper input validation and missing input sanitization within the donation plugin. User-supplied input is directly incorporated into SQL queries without proper escaping or parameterization. This violates secure coding practices for database interactions in WordPress plugin development, where prepared statements with parameterized queries should always be used to prevent SQL injection attacks.

Attack Vector

The attack vector for CVE-2025-13001 is network-based and requires authentication with administrator-level privileges. An attacker with admin access to the WordPress installation can manipulate the vulnerable parameter to inject malicious SQL statements. The injected SQL commands are then executed against the database, potentially allowing the attacker to:

• Extract sensitive data from the WordPress database
• Access user credentials and personal information
• Read data from other tables beyond the plugin's scope
• Potentially pivot to access other database information

While the requirement for administrator privileges limits the attack surface, compromised admin accounts, insider threats, or privilege escalation chains could enable exploitation of this vulnerability.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-13001

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual SQL error messages appearing in WordPress logs or plugin debug output
• Unexpected database queries containing SQL injection patterns such as UNION SELECT, OR 1=1, or comment sequences like -- or /*
• Abnormal administrator activity patterns, particularly involving the donation plugin's administrative functions
• Database access logs showing queries with unusual structures or accessing unexpected tables

Detection Strategies

Organizations should implement the following detection strategies:

1. Web Application Firewall (WAF) Rules: Configure WAF rules to detect and block SQL injection patterns in HTTP requests targeting WordPress admin endpoints
2. Database Activity Monitoring: Monitor database query logs for suspicious patterns indicative of SQL injection attempts
3. WordPress Security Plugins: Deploy security plugins that can detect and alert on potential SQL injection attempts
4. Log Analysis: Regularly analyze web server and WordPress logs for anomalous request patterns

Monitoring Recommendations

Implement comprehensive logging for all administrative actions within the WordPress installation, particularly those interacting with the donation plugin. Enable MySQL query logging temporarily to identify any suspicious query patterns. Consider deploying a Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solution to correlate events and detect potential exploitation attempts. Regular security audits of installed plugins should be conducted to identify vulnerable components.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-13001

Immediate Actions Required

• Review and audit the donation plugin code for the vulnerable parameter handling
• Consider disabling or removing the donation plugin until an official patch is available
• Restrict administrator access to only trusted users with a legitimate need
• Implement additional access controls and monitoring for administrative functions
• Enable WordPress debug logging to capture any suspicious activity

Patch Information

At the time of publication, specific patch information for this vulnerability has not been provided by the plugin vendor. Organizations should monitor the WPScan vulnerability database for updates regarding official patches or updated plugin versions that address this SQL injection vulnerability.

Workarounds

Until an official patch is available, organizations can implement the following workarounds to reduce risk:

The most effective mitigation is to remove or deactivate the vulnerable donation plugin if it is not critical to operations. If the plugin must remain active, implement strict network-level access controls to limit who can access the WordPress admin panel. Additionally, deploying a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with SQL injection detection rules can help block exploitation attempts. Review and audit all administrator accounts to ensure only authorized personnel have access, and consider implementing multi-factor authentication for all administrative accounts to reduce the risk of credential compromise.