CVE-2025-30974: Post Grid Master Auth Bypass Flaw

CVE-2025-30974 Overview

CVE-2025-30974 is a missing authorization vulnerability [CWE-862] in the Post Grid Master WordPress plugin developed by Akhtarujjaman Shuvo. The flaw affects the ajax-filter-posts functionality and allows authenticated attackers with low privileges to exploit incorrectly configured access control checks. All versions of Post Grid Master up to and including 3.4.17 are affected. An attacker with low-privilege access on a WordPress site can abuse the unprotected AJAX endpoints to perform actions that should be restricted to higher-privileged roles, compromising confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Critical Impact
Authenticated attackers can bypass access controls in Post Grid Master to perform unauthorized actions, with full impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability across affected WordPress installations.

Affected Products

Akhtarujjaman Shuvo Post Grid Master (WordPress plugin)
Post Grid Master versions from n/a through <= 3.4.17
WordPress installations using the ajax-filter-posts component

Discovery Timeline

2025-06-06 - CVE-2025-30974 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-30974

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in the ajax-filter-posts component of Post Grid Master. The plugin exposes AJAX actions that lack proper capability checks before performing privileged operations. As a result, any authenticated WordPress user, including low-privilege roles such as Subscriber, can invoke these endpoints and trigger actions intended for administrators or editors.

The attack is performed over the network against the WordPress AJAX handler. Because exploitation requires only low privileges and no user interaction, mass exploitation against multi-author WordPress sites and sites permitting open registration is realistic. Successful exploitation impacts confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the WordPress site.

Root Cause

The root cause is a missing authorization check [CWE-862] within the plugin's AJAX action handlers. WordPress plugins must validate the caller's capabilities using functions such as current_user_can() and verify request authenticity via check_ajax_referer(). The affected handlers in ajax-filter-posts fail to enforce these checks, treating any authenticated session as authorized to perform sensitive operations.

Attack Vector

An attacker authenticates to the target WordPress site using any account, including a self-registered Subscriber. The attacker then sends crafted HTTP POST requests to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php specifying the vulnerable plugin action. Because authorization is not enforced, the server processes the request and executes the privileged operation. No social engineering or user interaction is required. Refer to the Patchstack Vulnerability Database Entry for additional technical context.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-30974

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected POST requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php referencing Post Grid Master AJAX actions from low-privilege user sessions.
Newly created or modified posts, taxonomies, or plugin settings without a corresponding administrator action in audit logs.
WordPress accounts with Subscriber or Contributor roles generating high-volume AJAX traffic.

Detection Strategies

Inventory WordPress sites and identify installations running Post Grid Master versions <= 3.4.17.
Inspect web server logs for admin-ajax.php calls invoking ajax-filter-posts actions from non-administrator accounts.
Correlate WordPress user role data with AJAX action frequency to surface privilege anomalies.

Monitoring Recommendations

Forward WordPress access logs and wp_audit events to a centralized logging platform for retention and analysis.
Alert on anomalous AJAX request rates from any single authenticated session.
Track plugin version drift across WordPress estates to flag unpatched Post Grid Master instances.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-30974

Immediate Actions Required

Identify all WordPress sites running Post Grid Master and confirm the installed version.
Update Post Grid Master to a version newer than 3.4.17 once the vendor publishes a fixed release.
Restrict new user registrations or require manual approval until patching is complete.
Review recent administrative changes and AJAX activity for signs of abuse.

Patch Information

At the time of publication, the vulnerability affects Post Grid Master through version 3.4.17. Site operators should monitor the Patchstack Vulnerability Database Entry and the official WordPress plugin repository for the fixed release and apply it across all affected sites.

Workarounds

Disable and remove the Post Grid Master plugin until a patched version is available.
Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block requests to admin-ajax.php that invoke Post Grid Master actions from non-administrator sessions.
Limit WordPress registrations and audit existing low-privilege accounts.
Apply least privilege by removing unused user accounts and downgrading roles where possible.

bash

# Quick inventory: find Post Grid Master installs and versions across a server
find /var/www -type f -path '*/plugins/ajax-filter-posts/*.php' -exec \
  grep -lE "Version:\s*3\." {} \; | while read f; do
    echo "--- $f ---"
    grep -E "^[[:space:]]*\*?\s*Version:" "$f"
done