CVE-2025-31400: WS Audio Player CSRF Vulnerability

CVE-2025-31400 Overview

CVE-2025-31400 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the WS Audio Player WordPress plugin developed by icyleaf. This vulnerability allows attackers to chain CSRF with Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), enabling malicious actors to inject persistent scripts into the WordPress site by tricking authenticated administrators into performing unintended actions.

Critical Impact

Attackers can leverage CSRF to inject malicious JavaScript that persists in the application, potentially leading to session hijacking, administrative account compromise, website defacement, or malware distribution to site visitors.

Affected Products

• WS Audio Player WordPress Plugin versions through 1.1.8
• WordPress installations with WS Audio Player (ws-audio-player) active

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-04-09 - CVE-2025-31400 published to NVD
• 2026-04-15 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-31400

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability represents a dangerous combination of two web application security flaws. The WS Audio Player plugin lacks proper CSRF token validation on sensitive administrative actions, which when combined with insufficient input sanitization, allows attackers to inject and store malicious scripts within the WordPress database.

The vulnerability chain works by first exploiting the missing CSRF protection to submit unauthorized requests on behalf of an authenticated administrator. Because the plugin also fails to properly sanitize user input before storing it, an attacker can inject JavaScript payloads that execute whenever the affected page or administrative interface is viewed.

The impact extends beyond the initial victim—since the XSS payload is stored persistently, it will execute for every user who views the compromised content, including other administrators and site visitors. This creates an opportunity for widespread compromise through credential theft, session hijacking, or drive-by downloads.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is twofold: First, the plugin fails to implement or validate CSRF tokens (nonces in WordPress terminology) when processing administrative requests. Second, user-supplied input is not properly sanitized or escaped before being stored in the database and rendered in the browser. WordPress provides built-in functions like wp_nonce_field(), wp_verify_nonce(), sanitize_text_field(), and esc_html() that should be used to prevent these issues, but the vulnerable plugin fails to implement these security controls adequately.

Attack Vector

The attack requires social engineering to lure an authenticated WordPress administrator to visit a malicious webpage or click a crafted link. The attacker's page contains a hidden form or JavaScript that automatically submits a request to the vulnerable plugin endpoint. Because the administrator's browser includes valid session cookies with the request and no CSRF token validation occurs, the malicious request is processed as legitimate.

The request payload includes JavaScript code that gets stored in the plugin's configuration or content areas. Once stored, this script executes in the context of the WordPress admin panel or frontend whenever the affected content is loaded, allowing the attacker to steal cookies, redirect users, modify page content, or perform additional malicious actions.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-31400

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected JavaScript code in WS Audio Player plugin settings or database entries
• Suspicious <script> tags or event handlers (e.g., onerror, onload) in audio player content
• Unusual outbound network requests from the WordPress admin panel to unknown domains
• Administrator accounts exhibiting unexpected behavior or unauthorized configuration changes

Detection Strategies

• Review WordPress database tables associated with the WS Audio Player plugin for malicious content
• Monitor web server access logs for unusual POST requests to plugin endpoints from external referrers
• Implement Content Security Policy (CSP) headers and monitor for policy violations
• Use WordPress security plugins to scan for known malicious patterns in stored content

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable WordPress audit logging to track administrative actions and configuration changes
• Configure real-time alerting for modifications to plugin settings
• Monitor for cross-origin form submissions targeting WordPress administrative endpoints
• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect CSRF and XSS attack patterns

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-31400

Immediate Actions Required

• Deactivate and remove the WS Audio Player plugin until a patched version is available
• Review plugin database entries for any signs of injected malicious scripts
• Audit administrator accounts for unauthorized access or suspicious activity
• Clear browser caches for users who accessed the WordPress admin panel

Patch Information

As of the last update, no patched version has been confirmed. Organizations should monitor the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for updates on remediation. Consider migrating to an alternative audio player plugin that maintains active security support.

Workarounds

• Disable the WS Audio Player plugin entirely until a security patch is released
• Implement strict Content Security Policy headers to mitigate XSS impact
• Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with CSRF and XSS protection rules enabled
• Restrict administrative access to trusted IP addresses only
• Ensure administrators are educated about social engineering and avoid clicking untrusted links while authenticated

# WordPress plugin management - Deactivate vulnerable plugin
wp plugin deactivate ws-audio-player

# Optional: Remove the plugin entirely
wp plugin delete ws-audio-player

# Review database for potential XSS payloads (adjust table name as needed)
wp db query "SELECT * FROM wp_options WHERE option_name LIKE '%ws_audio%' AND option_value LIKE '%<script%';"