CVE-2025-22637 Overview
CVE-2025-22637 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the Print PDF Generator and Publisher WordPress plugin developed by verkkovaraani (nopeamedia). The flaw affects all plugin versions up to and including 1.2.0. An attacker can trick an authenticated user into submitting a forged request that performs unintended actions in the plugin. Exploitation requires user interaction, such as clicking a malicious link or visiting an attacker-controlled page. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-352 and is tracked in the Patchstack Vulnerability Report.
Critical Impact
Attackers can perform unauthorized state-changing actions in the plugin by exploiting authenticated user sessions, leading to limited integrity impact on affected WordPress sites.
Affected Products
- verkkovaraani Print PDF Generator and Publisher plugin for WordPress
- All plugin versions from n/a through 1.2.0
- WordPress installations with the nopeamedia plugin enabled
Discovery Timeline
- 2025-03-27 - CVE-2025-22637 published to NVD
- 2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2025-22637
Vulnerability Analysis
The vulnerability stems from missing or insufficient CSRF protections in the Print PDF Generator and Publisher plugin. WordPress plugins are expected to validate requests using nonces generated by wp_create_nonce() and verified through check_admin_referer() or wp_verify_nonce(). The affected plugin does not properly enforce these checks on one or more state-changing endpoints. An attacker can craft an HTML page or link that triggers a request to a vulnerable plugin endpoint. When an authenticated WordPress user visits the attacker-controlled resource, the browser automatically includes valid session cookies. The plugin then processes the request as if it originated from the legitimate user.
Root Cause
The root cause is missing anti-CSRF token validation, categorized as [CWE-352]. The plugin trusts request origin based solely on the authenticated session cookie. It does not require a per-request nonce tied to the user session and action. This allows cross-origin requests to invoke privileged actions without the user's consent.
Attack Vector
Exploitation occurs over the network and requires user interaction. An attacker delivers a malicious link, embedded image, or auto-submitting form to a WordPress user who is already logged in. When the target loads the payload, the browser issues the forged request against the vulnerable plugin endpoint. The impact is limited to integrity, with no direct confidentiality or availability effect based on the published CVSS metrics.
See the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for further technical detail on the vulnerable endpoints.
Detection Methods for CVE-2025-22637
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected changes to plugin settings or generated PDF content originating from routine user browsing sessions.
- HTTP POST or GET requests to the plugin's administrative endpoints with Referer headers pointing to external domains.
- WordPress audit log entries showing configuration changes without corresponding admin dashboard activity.
Detection Strategies
- Inspect web server access logs for requests to plugin endpoints where the Referer header does not match the site's own domain.
- Enable a WordPress activity logging plugin to correlate plugin state changes with user login sessions and originating IP addresses.
- Review browser network traces on administrator systems for cross-origin requests targeting wp-admin paths related to the plugin.
Monitoring Recommendations
- Alert on outbound-referrer requests hitting authenticated WordPress admin endpoints.
- Monitor for anomalous plugin configuration changes outside expected administrative maintenance windows.
- Correlate WordPress user session activity with unexpected content modifications to identify potential CSRF exploitation attempts.
How to Mitigate CVE-2025-22637
Immediate Actions Required
- Disable or deactivate the Print PDF Generator and Publisher plugin until a patched release is confirmed.
- Require administrators and privileged users to log out of WordPress before browsing untrusted sites.
- Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to reject requests to the plugin's endpoints when the Referer or Origin header does not match the site's domain.
Patch Information
At the time of this writing, no fixed version is listed beyond 1.2.0 in the referenced advisory. Administrators should consult the Patchstack Vulnerability Report and the plugin's official page in the WordPress plugin directory for updated release information. Apply the vendor-supplied update as soon as it becomes available.
Workarounds
- Restrict access to wp-admin paths using IP allowlisting at the web server or WAF layer.
- Enforce SameSite=Lax or SameSite=Strict cookie attributes on WordPress session cookies to reduce cross-origin request risk.
- Use browser isolation or dedicated administrative browsers for WordPress management to prevent CSRF payload delivery through general web browsing.
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
