CVE-2025-47555: Tutor LMS Auth Bypass Vulnerability

CVE-2025-47555 Overview

CVE-2025-47555 is an Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key vulnerability affecting the Themeum Tutor LMS WordPress plugin. This vulnerability, classified as an Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR), allows attackers to exploit incorrectly configured access control security levels within the plugin. The flaw enables unauthorized access to protected resources by manipulating user-controlled identifiers.

Critical Impact

Attackers can bypass authorization controls to access or modify resources belonging to other users, potentially compromising sensitive course data, student information, and administrative functions within the learning management system.

Affected Products

• Themeum Tutor LMS WordPress Plugin versions up to and including 3.9.4
• WordPress installations running vulnerable versions of Tutor LMS
• Learning management systems built on affected Tutor LMS deployments

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-01-22 - CVE CVE-2025-47555 published to NVD
• 2026-01-22 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-47555

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability falls under CWE-639 (Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key), a common weakness pattern where the application uses user-supplied input to directly access objects without proper authorization validation. In the context of Tutor LMS, the plugin fails to adequately verify that the requesting user has permission to access or manipulate the resources identified by user-controlled parameters.

The IDOR vulnerability allows authenticated users to access resources that belong to other users by simply modifying identifier values in requests. This type of flaw typically affects endpoints that handle user-specific data such as course enrollments, quiz results, assignments, certificates, or user profile information.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability stems from insufficient access control validation within the Tutor LMS plugin. When processing requests that reference specific objects (such as courses, users, or submissions), the application accepts user-controlled identifiers without verifying that the authenticated user has legitimate authorization to access those particular resources. This creates a direct mapping between user input and backend objects without an intervening authorization layer.

Attack Vector

The attack vector involves an authenticated user manipulating object identifiers in HTTP requests to access resources belonging to other users. An attacker would first authenticate to the WordPress site with a valid account (potentially a low-privileged student account), then systematically modify ID parameters in API calls or form submissions to enumerate and access data associated with other users, courses, or administrative functions.

The exploitation typically follows this pattern: the attacker identifies endpoints that accept object identifiers, modifies these identifiers to reference resources owned by other users, and bypasses the intended access controls to view, modify, or delete unauthorized data. This can lead to horizontal privilege escalation (accessing peer user data) or potentially vertical privilege escalation if administrative objects can be referenced.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-47555

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual patterns of sequential or systematic ID enumeration in web server access logs
• Multiple requests to user-specific endpoints with varying ID parameters from a single session
• Access log entries showing users retrieving resources that don't belong to their account
• Elevated number of requests to course, quiz, or user management endpoints from non-administrative accounts

Detection Strategies

• Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block ID enumeration attempts
• Monitor for anomalous access patterns where users request resources outside their normal scope
• Review WordPress and Tutor LMS logs for unauthorized access attempts to protected endpoints
• Deploy runtime application self-protection (RASP) solutions to detect IDOR exploitation attempts

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging for all Tutor LMS API endpoints and administrative actions
• Configure alerting for access attempts to resources across user boundaries
• Implement audit trails for sensitive operations such as grade modifications, certificate generation, and enrollment changes
• Monitor for unusual spikes in requests to endpoints that handle user-specific data

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-47555

Immediate Actions Required

• Update Themeum Tutor LMS to a patched version as soon as one becomes available
• Review and restrict access to sensitive Tutor LMS endpoints at the web server or WAF level
• Audit existing user accounts for signs of unauthorized data access or modification
• Consider temporarily disabling non-essential Tutor LMS features that may be affected until patched

Patch Information

Security advisories and patch details are available through the Patchstack Vulnerability Advisory. WordPress administrators should monitor Themeum's official channels for security updates and apply patches immediately upon release. Ensure that automatic updates are enabled for the Tutor LMS plugin or establish a process for timely manual updates.

Workarounds

• Implement additional server-side access control validation through custom WordPress hooks or middleware
• Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to add an extra layer of authorization checking
• Restrict Tutor LMS functionality to trusted users only until a patch is available
• Consider implementing IP-based access restrictions for administrative endpoints

# Example: Restrict access to Tutor LMS REST API endpoints via .htaccess
# Add to WordPress root .htaccess file

# Block direct access to sensitive Tutor LMS endpoints from unauthorized IPs
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} ^/wp-json/tutor/ [NC]
RewriteCond %{REMOTE_ADDR} !^192\.168\.1\. 
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ - [F,L]
</IfModule>