CVE-2025-28858: Arrow Maps Plugin XSS Vulnerability

CVE-2025-28858 Overview

CVE-2025-28858 is a Reflected Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability affecting the Arrow Maps WordPress plugin (ap-google-maps) developed by Arrow Plugins. This vulnerability allows attackers to inject malicious scripts through improper neutralization of user input during web page generation, potentially compromising user sessions and website integrity.

Critical Impact

Attackers can execute arbitrary JavaScript code in the context of a victim's browser session, enabling session hijacking, credential theft, and website defacement for WordPress sites running the vulnerable Arrow Maps plugin.

Affected Products

• Arrow Maps WordPress Plugin versions up to and including 1.0.9
• WordPress installations running the ap-google-maps plugin

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-03-26 - CVE-2025-28858 published to NVD
• 2026-04-15 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-28858

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation, commonly known as Cross-Site Scripting (XSS). The Arrow Maps plugin fails to properly sanitize user-supplied input before reflecting it back in the rendered web page, creating an opportunity for attackers to inject and execute malicious JavaScript code.

Reflected XSS attacks typically require social engineering to trick a victim into clicking a maliciously crafted link. When successful, the injected script executes within the security context of the vulnerable WordPress site, inheriting the victim's session privileges and authentication state.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the Arrow Maps plugin's failure to implement proper input validation and output encoding. User-controlled parameters are directly embedded into HTML output without adequate sanitization, allowing specially crafted input containing JavaScript code to be rendered and executed by the victim's browser.

WordPress plugins that handle user input for map configurations, search parameters, or display settings are particularly susceptible to XSS when developers neglect to apply WordPress's built-in escaping functions such as esc_html(), esc_attr(), or wp_kses().

Attack Vector

The attack vector involves crafting a malicious URL containing JavaScript payload within vulnerable plugin parameters. When a victim clicks this link, the malicious script executes in their browser context. Potential attack scenarios include:

• Stealing session cookies and authentication tokens
• Performing actions on behalf of authenticated administrators
• Redirecting users to phishing sites
• Injecting keyloggers to capture sensitive information
• Defacing the WordPress site for visitors who click the malicious link

The vulnerability is exploited through reflected input parameters processed by the Arrow Maps plugin. For technical details regarding the specific vulnerable parameter and exploitation methodology, refer to the Patchstack Vulnerability Report.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-28858

Indicators of Compromise

• Suspicious URL parameters containing encoded JavaScript or HTML tags directed at Arrow Maps plugin endpoints
• Unusual access patterns to WordPress pages utilizing the ap-google-maps shortcodes
• User reports of unexpected redirects or browser warnings when accessing your WordPress site
• Web server logs showing requests with <script> tags or JavaScript event handlers in query strings

Detection Strategies

• Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block common XSS payload patterns in request parameters
• Deploy real-time monitoring for suspicious JavaScript execution patterns on WordPress frontend pages
• Utilize WordPress security plugins that scan for known vulnerable plugin versions
• Review server access logs for requests containing URL-encoded script elements targeting Arrow Maps functionality

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable comprehensive logging for all WordPress plugin activity, particularly user input processing
• Configure alerting for multiple failed input validation attempts or security plugin blocks
• Monitor for outbound connections to unknown domains that may indicate successful XSS exploitation
• Implement Content Security Policy (CSP) headers and monitor CSP violation reports for injection attempts

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-28858

Immediate Actions Required

• Identify all WordPress installations running the Arrow Maps (ap-google-maps) plugin
• Check the currently installed version against the vulnerable versions (up to and including 1.0.9)
• If no patch is available, consider temporarily deactivating the plugin until a fix is released
• Implement WAF rules to filter malicious XSS payloads targeting the plugin

Patch Information

At the time of publication, organizations should monitor the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for updates regarding patches from Arrow Plugins. Contact the plugin vendor directly to inquire about security updates addressing this vulnerability.

WordPress administrators should ensure automatic updates are enabled for plugins when available, and regularly check the WordPress plugin repository for security releases.

Workarounds

• Temporarily disable the Arrow Maps plugin if it is not critical to site functionality
• Implement strict Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to mitigate the impact of XSS attacks
• Deploy a Web Application Firewall with XSS protection rules enabled
• Restrict access to the WordPress admin panel to trusted IP addresses
• Consider using alternative mapping plugins that have undergone recent security audits

# WordPress CLI command to deactivate the vulnerable plugin
wp plugin deactivate ap-google-maps

# Add CSP headers in .htaccess as a defense-in-depth measure
# Header set Content-Security-Policy "default-src 'self'; script-src 'self' 'unsafe-inline' maps.googleapis.com; style-src 'self' 'unsafe-inline';"