CVE-2025-24591: GDPR CCPA Compliance Auth Bypass Flaw

CVE-2025-24591 is an authorization bypass vulnerability in Ninja Team GDPR CCPA Compliance & Cookie Consent Banner plugin that allows unauthorized access through misconfigured security levels. This article covers technical details, affected versions through 2.7.1, impact assessment, and mitigation strategies.

CVE-2025-24591 Overview

CVE-2025-24591 is a Missing Authorization vulnerability [CWE-862] in the Ninja Team GDPR CCPA Compliance & Cookie Consent Banner plugin for WordPress. The flaw affects all versions through 2.7.1 and stems from incorrectly configured access control on plugin endpoints. An authenticated attacker with low privileges can invoke restricted plugin functions exposed without proper capability checks. Successful exploitation can compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected WordPress site.

Critical Impact
Authenticated low-privilege users can bypass access controls in the ninja-gdpr-compliance plugin to perform actions reserved for administrators, leading to full site compromise.

Affected Products

Ninja Team GDPR CCPA Compliance & Cookie Consent Banner plugin (ninja-gdpr-compliance)
All versions from n/a through 2.7.1
WordPress sites running the affected plugin

Discovery Timeline

2025-01-24 - CVE-2025-24591 published to NVD
2026-04-23 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-24591

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a broken access control issue in the ninja-gdpr-compliance plugin. The plugin exposes one or more action handlers that perform privileged operations without verifying the caller's WordPress capabilities or role. Authenticated users at low privilege levels, such as subscribers, can reach these endpoints and trigger functionality intended only for administrators.

Because the plugin handles GDPR and CCPA configuration, the exposed actions may include modifying consent settings, cookie banners, plugin options, or data subject request workflows. An attacker can leverage these primitives to alter site behavior, inject malicious configuration, or pivot to further compromise. The issue is reachable over the network via standard WordPress request paths, making mass exploitation feasible against sites that allow open registration.

Root Cause

The root cause is a Missing Authorization check [CWE-862]. The plugin's request handlers do not validate the caller using current_user_can() or an equivalent capability check before executing sensitive operations. Authentication alone is treated as sufficient, which violates the principle of least privilege in the WordPress capability model.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires low-privilege authenticated access. An attacker registers or compromises a low-tier account, then submits crafted requests to the vulnerable plugin endpoints. No user interaction is required. Refer to the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for endpoint specifics.

No public proof-of-concept code is available at this time. The vulnerability manifests in plugin action handlers that omit capability checks before processing privileged requests.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-24591

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected modifications to GDPR or CCPA plugin settings in wp_options entries belonging to ninja-gdpr-compliance.
Requests to admin-ajax.php or plugin REST routes from accounts that lack administrative roles.
New or altered cookie banner content, consent records, or data subject request handlers not initiated by an administrator.
Authenticated sessions from low-privilege users issuing high volumes of POST requests to plugin endpoints.

Detection Strategies

Review WordPress access logs for non-admin user IDs invoking ninja-gdpr-compliance action hooks or AJAX actions.
Audit user roles for recently created subscriber accounts that have interacted with administrative plugin endpoints.
Compare current plugin configuration against a known-good baseline to identify unauthorized changes.

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable WordPress activity logging to capture option changes and AJAX calls per user.
Forward web server and WordPress logs to a centralized analytics platform for correlation across sessions and IPs.
Alert on privilege escalation patterns, such as subscriber accounts modifying plugin settings or creating administrative users shortly after interaction with the plugin.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-24591

Immediate Actions Required

Update the ninja-gdpr-compliance plugin to a version later than 2.7.1 once the vendor releases a fixed release.
Disable or remove the plugin on sites where an updated version is not yet available.
Audit recently created low-privilege accounts and remove any that appear suspicious.
Restrict new user registration to trusted sources until the plugin is patched.

Patch Information

At the time of NVD publication, the advisory lists affected versions through <= 2.7.1 with no fixed version explicitly published in the referenced data. Monitor the Patchstack Vulnerability Report and the plugin's WordPress.org listing for an updated release.

Workarounds

Deactivate the ninja-gdpr-compliance plugin until a patched version is available.
Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block unauthenticated and low-privilege access to plugin action endpoints.
Temporarily disable open user registration via Settings > General > Membership in WordPress.
Enforce strong role separation and remove unnecessary capabilities from subscriber and contributor roles.

bash

# Configuration example: disable the vulnerable plugin via WP-CLI
wp plugin deactivate ninja-gdpr-compliance
wp plugin status ninja-gdpr-compliance

# Optional: remove the plugin until a fixed release is available
wp plugin uninstall ninja-gdpr-compliance