CVE-2025-24778: No Spam At All Authorization Bypass Flaw

CVE-2025-24778 Overview

CVE-2025-24778 is a missing authorization vulnerability in the De paragon No Spam At All WordPress plugin. The flaw affects all versions up to and including 1.3. It stems from incorrectly configured access control security levels that allow authenticated users to invoke plugin functionality without the required authorization checks [CWE-862].

The vulnerability is network-exploitable and requires low-privilege authentication. Successful exploitation impacts integrity and availability of plugin-managed data. The issue was published to the National Vulnerability Database (NVD) on June 6, 2025.

Critical Impact
Authenticated attackers with low privileges can bypass access controls in the No Spam At All plugin to perform actions restricted to higher-privileged users on WordPress sites running version 1.3 or earlier.

Affected Products

De paragon No Spam At All plugin for WordPress, versions up to and including 1.3
WordPress sites with the no-spam-at-all plugin installed and activated
All hosting environments running the vulnerable plugin version

Discovery Timeline

2025-06-06 - CVE-2025-24778 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-24778

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a broken access control issue in the no-spam-at-all WordPress plugin. The plugin exposes functionality without verifying that the requesting user has the appropriate role or capability. This is a classic Missing Authorization weakness classified under [CWE-862].

Authenticated users with minimal privileges, such as subscribers, can invoke actions intended for administrators. The plugin fails to enforce capability checks using WordPress functions like current_user_can() before executing sensitive operations. Because access control is evaluated incorrectly, the security boundary between user roles collapses within the plugin scope.

The Patchstack advisory categorizes this as a broken access control vulnerability affecting plugin version 1.3 and earlier. See the Patchstack WordPress Plugin Advisory for the vendor coordination record.

Root Cause

The root cause is the absence or misconfiguration of authorization checks on plugin endpoints. WordPress plugins must gate privileged actions behind capability checks and, where applicable, nonce validation. The no-spam-at-all plugin either omits these checks or evaluates them against an incorrect capability level. As a result, the authorization decision does not match the sensitivity of the action performed.

Attack Vector

An attacker must first obtain an authenticated session on the target WordPress site. Low-privilege accounts, including subscriber-level users on sites that allow open registration, are sufficient. The attacker then issues HTTP requests to the plugin's exposed handler, typically via admin-ajax.php or a REST route registered by the plugin. Because the endpoint does not verify authorization, the plugin executes the requested action and modifies data the attacker should not be able to touch.

The vulnerability requires no user interaction and no elevated privileges beyond a standard authenticated account. No public proof-of-concept exploit code is currently available. Refer to the vendor advisory for endpoint-level technical details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-24778

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected changes to plugin configuration or stored data owned by the no-spam-at-all plugin
HTTP POST requests to admin-ajax.php referencing plugin actions from subscriber-level or newly registered accounts
Anomalous authenticated traffic patterns from accounts that historically only read content
WordPress audit log entries showing state changes attributed to low-privilege users

Detection Strategies

Inventory WordPress installations to identify sites running no-spam-at-all version 1.3 or earlier
Enable a WordPress activity logging plugin to record capability checks, AJAX calls, and REST API invocations
Correlate web server access logs for requests to plugin endpoints originating from non-administrative users
Deploy a web application firewall (WAF) rule set that flags unauthorized access to plugin actions

Monitoring Recommendations

Monitor authentication events for spikes in new low-privilege account registrations followed by immediate API activity
Alert on any modification to plugin option rows in the wp_options table by non-administrative sessions
Review admin-ajax.php and REST API logs daily for the no-spam-at-all action namespace
Track outbound HTTP callbacks or configuration writes that align with plugin functionality abuse

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-24778

Immediate Actions Required

Identify all WordPress installations running the no-spam-at-all plugin at version 1.3 or lower
Deactivate and remove the plugin on any site where a patched version is not available
Restrict new user registration or limit default roles to reduce the pool of authenticated attackers
Audit recent plugin-related database changes and user account creation for signs of exploitation

Patch Information

At the time of publication, the NVD record and the Patchstack WordPress Plugin Advisory identify all versions through 1.3 as vulnerable. Administrators should consult the Patchstack advisory and the plugin's WordPress.org page for updated fixed-version information. If no patched release is available, uninstall the plugin.

Workarounds

Uninstall the no-spam-at-all plugin until a patched version is released by the vendor
Block requests to plugin-specific admin-ajax.php actions and REST routes at the WAF layer
Restrict WordPress registration to trusted email domains or disable public registration entirely
Enforce the principle of least privilege by auditing existing user roles and removing unnecessary accounts

bash

# Configuration example: disable open registration and remove the vulnerable plugin
wp option update users_can_register 0
wp plugin deactivate no-spam-at-all
wp plugin uninstall no-spam-at-all