CVE-2025-49864: AFS Analytics Authorization Bypass Flaw

CVE-2025-49864 Overview

CVE-2025-49864 is a Missing Authorization vulnerability [CWE-862] in the AFS Analytics WordPress plugin. The flaw affects all versions of AFS Analytics up to and including 4.21. The plugin exposes functionality that is not properly constrained by access control lists (ACLs), allowing unauthenticated network attackers to invoke actions that should require authorization.

The issue is a broken access control weakness reported through Patchstack. Successful exploitation results in low-impact integrity effects on the affected WordPress site, with no user interaction required.

Critical Impact
Unauthenticated attackers can access plugin functionality not properly restricted by ACLs, enabling unauthorized modification of plugin state on WordPress sites running AFS Analytics 4.21 or earlier.

Affected Products

AFS Analytics WordPress plugin versions up to and including 4.21
WordPress installations with the addfreestats plugin enabled
Sites relying on AFS Analytics for traffic analytics functionality

Discovery Timeline

2025-06-17 - CVE-2025-49864 published to the National Vulnerability Database
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-49864

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in the AFS Analytics plugin (addfreestats) for WordPress. One or more plugin endpoints perform sensitive operations without verifying the caller's privileges. The plugin fails to implement capability checks such as current_user_can() or nonce validation on functionality that should be restricted to administrators.

An attacker can reach these endpoints over the network without authentication or user interaction. Because the confidentiality and availability impacts are none but integrity is affected, exploitation primarily allows unauthorized state changes rather than data theft or service disruption. The EPSS estimate is 0.211%, placing exploitation likelihood in the lower percentile of scored CVEs.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing authorization enforcement [CWE-862]. Plugin action handlers do not verify that the requesting user holds the required WordPress capability before executing privileged logic. The plugin also appears to lack CSRF nonce validation on the affected paths, compounding the exposure.

Attack Vector

Exploitation is performed remotely by sending crafted HTTP requests to the WordPress site hosting the vulnerable plugin. No credentials are required. The attacker targets AJAX or admin-post endpoints registered by AFS Analytics and invokes plugin actions directly. Refer to the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for endpoint-specific technical details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-49864

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected HTTP POST requests to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php or wp-admin/admin-post.php referencing AFS Analytics or addfreestats actions from unauthenticated sessions.
Modifications to AFS Analytics plugin settings or WordPress wp_options entries related to addfreestats without a corresponding administrator login event.
Access log entries showing requests to plugin endpoints from IP addresses that never authenticated to /wp-login.php.

Detection Strategies

Correlate WordPress audit logs with web server access logs to identify plugin action invocations that lack a preceding authenticated session.
Deploy a web application firewall rule to flag requests to AFS Analytics action handlers originating from unauthenticated clients.
Baseline legitimate administrator behavior for the addfreestats plugin and alert on deviations in request source or frequency.

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable verbose logging on WordPress admin-ajax.php and admin-post.php handlers.
Monitor the WordPress wp_options table and plugin-specific tables for unauthorized writes.
Track outbound requests initiated by the site that could indicate abuse of manipulated analytics configuration.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-49864

Immediate Actions Required

Identify all WordPress sites running the AFS Analytics plugin at version 4.21 or earlier.
Disable or remove the AFS Analytics plugin until a patched release is confirmed and applied.
Restrict access to /wp-admin/ paths through IP allow-listing or a web application firewall where feasible.

Patch Information

At the time of publication, the Patchstack Vulnerability Report lists versions through 4.21 as affected. Administrators should monitor the plugin's WordPress.org listing and Patchstack for a fixed release and apply it as soon as it is available.

Workarounds

Deactivate the addfreestats plugin until an upstream fix is published.
Add WAF rules that block unauthenticated requests to plugin AJAX and admin-post actions registered by AFS Analytics.
Enforce administrator authentication requirements at the reverse proxy layer for all /wp-admin/ endpoints.

bash

# Configuration example: temporarily deactivate the vulnerable plugin via WP-CLI
wp plugin deactivate addfreestats
wp plugin status addfreestats