CVE-2025-31869: Black Widgets For Elementor XSS Vulnerability

CVE-2025-31869 Overview

CVE-2025-31869 is a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Modernaweb Studio Black Widgets For Elementor plugin for WordPress. The flaw stems from improper neutralization of user-supplied input during web page generation [CWE-79]. Affected versions include all releases up to and including 1.3.9. An authenticated attacker with low privileges can inject persistent JavaScript payloads that execute in the browsers of site visitors and administrators who view the affected pages. The vulnerability requires user interaction and can impact confidentiality, integrity, and availability across a scope change, meaning the injected script runs in a security context beyond the vulnerable component.

Critical Impact
Stored JavaScript payloads persist in WordPress content and execute against every visitor, enabling session theft, administrative account takeover, and drive-by redirects.

Affected Products

Modernaweb Studio Black Widgets For Elementor plugin for WordPress
All versions from initial release through 1.3.9
WordPress sites running Elementor with the vulnerable plugin installed

Discovery Timeline

2025-04-01 - CVE-2025-31869 published to the National Vulnerability Database
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-31869

Vulnerability Analysis

The Black Widgets For Elementor plugin extends the Elementor page builder with additional widgets and design elements. The vulnerable code paths accept attacker-controlled input through widget configuration fields and render that input into page markup without sufficient sanitization or output encoding. When a contributor or higher role saves a widget containing a crafted payload, the malicious script is stored in the WordPress database. The script then executes each time a user renders the affected post, page, or template. Because the payload runs in the victim's browser under the site's origin, an attacker can hijack sessions, forge requests against the WordPress REST API, and pivot to full administrative control.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing or insufficient input validation and output escaping in widget rendering routines. Data submitted through widget attributes is echoed into HTML contexts without applying WordPress escaping functions such as esc_html(), esc_attr(), or wp_kses_post(). This permits raw HTML and <script> tags to survive from storage to rendering.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires an authenticated user with permission to edit Elementor content. The attacker injects a JavaScript payload into a vulnerable widget field, saves the page, and waits for a privileged user or site visitor to view the rendered output. See the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for additional technical context.

No public proof-of-concept exploit code has been released for this vulnerability at the time of publication.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-31869

Indicators of Compromise

WordPress postmeta or posts entries containing <script> tags, javascript: URIs, or event-handler attributes such as onerror= within Elementor widget data
Unexpected outbound requests from visitor browsers to attacker-controlled domains after loading pages built with Black Widgets
New administrator accounts or modified user roles following contributor-level activity on the site

Detection Strategies

Audit the wp_posts and wp_postmeta tables for Elementor widget serialized data containing HTML event handlers or script tags
Inspect web server logs for POST requests to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php and wp-json/ endpoints originating from low-privileged accounts and correlated with content edits
Deploy Content Security Policy (CSP) reporting to surface inline script violations on pages rendered by the plugin

Monitoring Recommendations

Monitor for privilege escalation events, session anomalies, and unexpected administrator logins from new IP addresses or user agents
Alert on modifications to plugin, theme, or user account tables performed shortly after a contributor edits a page
Track browser telemetry for unusual JavaScript execution patterns on pages containing Black Widgets components

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-31869

Immediate Actions Required

Identify all WordPress instances running Black Widgets For Elementor version 1.3.9 or earlier
Restrict content editing privileges to trusted users and review recent contributor and author activity for suspicious content
Purge cached pages and scan existing Elementor content for injected scripts before restoring public access

Patch Information

Refer to the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for vendor-supplied patch status. Update the plugin to any version released after 1.3.9 that addresses this issue. If no fixed release is available, remove or deactivate the plugin until a patch is confirmed.

Workarounds

Deactivate and remove the Black Widgets For Elementor plugin until a patched release is installed
Enforce a strict Content Security Policy that blocks inline scripts and restricts script sources to trusted origins
Deploy a web application firewall rule set that inspects Elementor widget submissions for HTML tags and JavaScript event handlers
Reduce the number of accounts holding contributor, author, or editor roles to the minimum required

bash

# Example: identify the installed plugin version using WP-CLI
wp plugin get black-widgets --field=version

# Example: deactivate the vulnerable plugin pending a patched release
wp plugin deactivate black-widgets