CVE-2025-53304 Overview
CVE-2025-53304 is a Missing Authorization vulnerability [CWE-862] in the Rohil Contact Form 7: Hide Success Message WordPress plugin. The flaw affects all plugin versions up to and including 1.1.4. The plugin fails to enforce proper access control checks on functionality that should be restricted, allowing unauthenticated network attackers to access constrained features. The vulnerability exposes a limited integrity impact without requiring user interaction or authentication. Site administrators using this plugin should treat this as a broken access control issue affecting the plugin's administrative or configuration endpoints.
Critical Impact
Unauthenticated attackers can invoke plugin functionality that is not properly constrained by access control lists, resulting in unauthorized modification of plugin state on affected WordPress sites.
Affected Products
- Rohil Contact Form 7: Hide Success Message plugin for WordPress
- Plugin versions from n/a through 1.1.4
- WordPress installations using the contact-form-7-hide-success-message plugin
Discovery Timeline
- 2025-06-27 - CVE-2025-53304 published to NVD
- 2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2025-53304
Vulnerability Analysis
The vulnerability stems from missing authorization checks in the Contact Form 7: Hide Success Message plugin. The plugin exposes functionality — likely AJAX actions or admin-post handlers — without verifying whether the requesting user has the required capability or role. Under CWE-862, the application does not perform an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.
Attackers can send crafted HTTP requests to the plugin's endpoints without authenticating. Because the plugin trusts the request without validating the user context, protected operations execute successfully. The scope is limited to low integrity impact, meaning attackers can modify a subset of plugin data or settings but cannot achieve confidentiality or availability compromise directly through this flaw.
Root Cause
The root cause is the absence of current_user_can() capability checks and nonce validation on plugin action handlers. WordPress plugins must verify both the user's capability and a valid nonce before executing state-changing actions. This plugin omits one or both checks on at least one endpoint through version 1.1.4.
Attack Vector
An unauthenticated attacker sends an HTTP request over the network to the WordPress site hosting the vulnerable plugin. The request targets the plugin's action handler directly, bypassing the authorization gate. No user interaction is required. See the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for the underlying advisory.
Detection Methods for CVE-2025-53304
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected changes to plugin settings or Contact Form 7 success message configuration on WordPress sites
- HTTP POST requests to admin-ajax.php or plugin-specific endpoints from unauthenticated sources referencing the contact-form-7-hide-success-message plugin actions
- Access log entries showing requests to plugin handlers without associated authentication cookies
Detection Strategies
- Review WordPress access logs for anomalous requests targeting the plugin's AJAX or admin-post actions originating from external IP addresses
- Audit plugin configuration and database options for unauthorized modifications
- Compare current plugin file integrity against known-good release artifacts to detect tampering
Monitoring Recommendations
- Enable WordPress activity logging plugins to record configuration and option changes
- Forward web server access logs to a centralized log platform and alert on high-frequency unauthenticated requests to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php
- Monitor for the presence of the vulnerable plugin version 1.1.4 or earlier across managed WordPress fleets
How to Mitigate CVE-2025-53304
Immediate Actions Required
- Identify all WordPress sites running the contact-form-7-hide-success-message plugin at version 1.1.4 or earlier
- Deactivate and remove the plugin if a patched version is not available or the plugin is not essential
- Restrict access to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php from untrusted networks where feasible using a Web Application Firewall
Patch Information
At the time of publication, the affected version range is documented as "from n/a through <= 1.1.4" in the Patchstack Vulnerability Report. Administrators should consult the plugin's WordPress.org page for the latest release and upgrade to any version beyond 1.1.4 that addresses the missing authorization check.
Workarounds
- Deploy WAF rules to block unauthenticated POST requests to the plugin's AJAX action names
- Remove the plugin entirely and use native Contact Form 7 filters or custom CSS to hide the success message
- Restrict wp-admin access to trusted IP ranges via server-level access controls until a fix is applied
# Example: locate and disable the vulnerable plugin via WP-CLI
wp plugin list --name=contact-form-7-hide-success-message --fields=name,status,version
wp plugin deactivate contact-form-7-hide-success-message
wp plugin delete contact-form-7-hide-success-message
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
