CVE-2025-22562 Overview
CVE-2025-22562 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability [CWE-352] in the Title Experiments Free WordPress plugin developed by kbowson. The flaw affects all plugin versions up to and including 9.0.4. An attacker can craft a malicious web page that, when visited by an authenticated WordPress user, triggers unintended state-changing actions in the plugin. Successful exploitation requires user interaction but no authentication on the attacker's side. The vulnerability results in limited integrity impact without direct exposure of confidentiality or availability.
Critical Impact
Attackers can trick authenticated WordPress users into executing unauthorized plugin actions through crafted requests, altering plugin state without consent.
Affected Products
- kbowson Title Experiments Free (wp-experiments-free) WordPress plugin
- All versions from n/a through 9.0.4
- WordPress sites running the vulnerable plugin
Discovery Timeline
- 2025-01-07 - CVE-2025-22562 published to NVD
- 2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2025-22562
Vulnerability Analysis
The Title Experiments Free plugin fails to validate the origin of state-changing HTTP requests. WordPress provides nonce mechanisms through functions such as wp_nonce_field() and check_admin_referer() to protect against forged requests. The vulnerable plugin either omits these tokens or fails to verify them before executing privileged actions. The issue is classified under [CWE-352] Cross-Site Request Forgery.
An attacker exploits this weakness by hosting a page that submits a crafted request to the target site. When an authenticated WordPress administrator or editor visits that page, the browser automatically attaches session cookies to the request. The plugin then processes the request as if it originated from the legitimate user.
Root Cause
The root cause is missing or insufficient CSRF token verification in plugin handlers that perform state changes. Without validating a nonce tied to the user session, the plugin cannot distinguish between intentional user actions and forged cross-origin requests.
Attack Vector
Exploitation requires an authenticated victim to visit an attacker-controlled URL or open a malicious email link. The attacker crafts an HTML form or JavaScript payload that auto-submits a request to a vulnerable plugin endpoint on the target WordPress site. Because the request rides on the victim's authenticated session, the plugin executes the action. The attack occurs over the network and does not require prior credentials on the target site.
See the Patchstack WordPress CSRF Vulnerability advisory for additional technical context.
Detection Methods for CVE-2025-22562
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected changes to Title Experiments Free plugin settings or stored experiment data
- WordPress access log entries showing POST requests to plugin endpoints with external Referer headers
- Administrator sessions producing plugin actions immediately after visiting third-party sites
- Absence of valid _wpnonce parameters on plugin state-changing requests
Detection Strategies
- Review WordPress access logs for requests to wp-experiments-free endpoints containing Referer values from untrusted domains
- Compare plugin configuration snapshots over time to detect unauthorized modifications
- Alert on POST requests to plugin admin URLs that lack a valid nonce query parameter
Monitoring Recommendations
- Enable WordPress audit logging plugins to capture administrator-initiated plugin changes
- Forward web server logs to a centralized SIEM and correlate outbound admin actions with browser referrer data
- Monitor for phishing campaigns targeting site administrators that could deliver CSRF payloads
How to Mitigate CVE-2025-22562
Immediate Actions Required
- Deactivate the Title Experiments Free plugin until a patched version above 9.0.4 becomes available
- Restrict WordPress administrator accounts and require re-authentication for privileged actions
- Instruct administrators to log out of WordPress sessions before browsing untrusted sites
Patch Information
At the time of publication, no fixed version above 9.0.4 is referenced in the advisory. Monitor the Patchstack advisory and the plugin's WordPress.org page for a release addressing CVE-2025-22562.
Workarounds
- Remove the plugin from production sites if a patch is unavailable
- Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule that blocks requests to plugin endpoints lacking a valid _wpnonce parameter
- Enforce SameSite=Lax or SameSite=Strict cookie attributes on WordPress session cookies to reduce cross-origin request exposure
- Segment administrative browsing from general web activity by using a dedicated browser profile
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
