CVE-2025-58876: Aparat Video Shortcode XSS Vulnerability

CVE-2025-58876 Overview

CVE-2025-58876 is a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Ali Aghdam Aparat Video Shortcode WordPress plugin (aparat-shortcode). The flaw affects all versions up to and including 0.2.4. It results from improper neutralization of user-supplied input during web page generation, classified as [CWE-79]. An authenticated attacker with low privileges can inject malicious script payloads that persist on the site and execute in the browsers of visitors and administrators. Successful exploitation requires user interaction to trigger the stored payload.

Critical Impact

Stored XSS payloads persist in the WordPress database and execute in the context of victim sessions, enabling session theft, administrative action forgery, and site defacement.

Affected Products

• Ali Aghdam Aparat Video Shortcode plugin for WordPress
• All versions from initial release through 0.2.4
• WordPress sites using the aparat-shortcode component

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-09-05 - CVE-2025-58876 published to NVD
• 2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-58876

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a stored cross-site scripting flaw in the Aparat Video Shortcode plugin. The plugin accepts input intended for constructing video embed shortcodes but does not sanitize or encode that input before rendering it into WordPress-generated HTML. An attacker with contributor-level or similar low-privileged access can inject JavaScript into shortcode attributes or plugin-controlled fields. When another user, including an administrator, visits the affected page, the injected script executes in their browser session.

Because the scope is changed (payloads execute in other users' browsers), the impact extends beyond the attacker's own account. Attackers can hijack authenticated sessions, perform actions on behalf of administrators, exfiltrate cookies, or redirect visitors to attacker-controlled infrastructure.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing output encoding and input validation in the shortcode rendering logic. User-controlled parameters flow directly into the generated HTML without passing through WordPress sanitization APIs such as esc_attr(), esc_html(), or wp_kses(). This allows raw <script> tags and event-handler attributes to reach the browser DOM.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires the attacker to hold a valid low-privileged WordPress account. The attacker submits crafted content containing script payloads through the plugin's shortcode input. A victim, typically an authenticated site visitor or administrator, must load the page containing the stored payload for exploitation to succeed. See the Patchstack XSS Vulnerability Report for additional technical context.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-58876

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected <script> tags, on* event handlers, or javascript: URIs stored in wp_posts content that contains [aparat] shortcode usage.
• Outbound requests from administrator browser sessions to unfamiliar domains shortly after loading pages that render the Aparat shortcode.
• New or modified WordPress administrator accounts created without a corresponding legitimate audit trail.

Detection Strategies

• Query the WordPress database for post content containing shortcode attributes that include <, >, or on event handler substrings.
• Review web server access logs for POST requests from low-privileged users submitting payloads with encoded script markers.
• Inspect rendered HTML output of pages using the [aparat] shortcode for unescaped user-controlled attribute values.

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable a web application firewall rule set that flags XSS payload patterns in WordPress admin-ajax.php and post submission endpoints.
• Log and alert on shortcode content modifications performed by contributor or author roles.
• Monitor browser-side Content Security Policy (CSP) violation reports to surface injected inline script execution attempts.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-58876

Immediate Actions Required

• Deactivate the Aparat Video Shortcode plugin until a patched release is confirmed available for versions beyond 0.2.4.
• Audit existing posts and pages that use the [aparat] shortcode for injected script content and remove malicious payloads.
• Rotate credentials and invalidate active sessions for administrator accounts that may have loaded compromised pages.

Patch Information

At the time of publication, the vulnerability affects all versions of aparat-shortcode through 0.2.4. Refer to the Patchstack advisory for the latest fix status and vendor updates.

Workarounds

• Remove the plugin entirely and replace video embedding with WordPress core oEmbed or a maintained alternative.
• Restrict contributor and author account provisioning to trusted users while the plugin remains installed.
• Deploy a Content Security Policy that disallows inline script execution to reduce the impact of stored XSS payloads.

# Example CSP header to restrict inline script execution
Header set Content-Security-Policy "default-src 'self'; script-src 'self'; object-src 'none'; base-uri 'self'"