CVE-2025-60116: Grand Conference Auth Bypass Vulnerability

CVE-2025-60116 Overview

CVE-2025-60116 is a missing authorization vulnerability in the ThemeGoods Grand Conference Theme Custom Post Type plugin for WordPress. The flaw resides in the grandconference-custom-post plugin and stems from incorrectly configured access control security levels. Authenticated attackers with low privileges can abuse plugin functionality that fails to enforce capability checks. The issue affects all versions from initial release through 2.6.3, with the fix landing in version 2.6.4. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-862: Missing Authorization.

Critical Impact
A low-privileged authenticated WordPress user can exploit broken access control to compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability of sites running the vulnerable plugin.

Affected Products

ThemeGoods Grand Conference Theme Custom Post Type plugin (grandconference-custom-post)
All versions prior to 2.6.4
WordPress sites using the Grand Conference theme ecosystem

Discovery Timeline

2025-09-26 - CVE-2025-60116 published to NVD
2026-04-23 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-60116

Vulnerability Analysis

The plugin exposes one or more action handlers that perform privileged operations on custom post type data without verifying the calling user's capabilities. WordPress requires developers to wrap sensitive operations in current_user_can() checks and validate nonces with check_ajax_referer() or wp_verify_nonce(). The Grand Conference Custom Post Type plugin omits these enforcement points on routes intended for administrators.

An authenticated user at the Subscriber level or higher can call these endpoints directly. The plugin processes the request as if it originated from a privileged user and performs create, modify, or delete operations on plugin-managed content and configuration. Because the attack vector is network-based and complexity is low, exploitation requires only valid session credentials and a crafted HTTP request.

Root Cause

The root cause is the absence of authorization checks on plugin AJAX or admin-post handlers. The code path executes the requested action before validating the user's role or capability. This is a classic [CWE-862] pattern where authentication is verified by WordPress but authorization is never re-evaluated by the plugin.

Attack Vector

An attacker first obtains low-privilege credentials on the target WordPress site, which is common on sites permitting open registration. The attacker then issues authenticated POST requests to the unprotected plugin endpoints. The handler executes administrative logic, allowing data tampering, unauthorized content publishing, or modification of plugin settings. The combination of high impact across confidentiality, integrity, and availability indicates the vulnerable endpoints reach sensitive data and persistent storage.

No public proof-of-concept code is currently available. Refer to the Patchstack advisory for additional technical context.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-60116

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected create, update, or delete events on grandconference custom post type entries performed by non-administrator accounts.
HTTP POST requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php or /wp-admin/admin-post.php containing Grand Conference plugin actions originating from low-privilege sessions.
New or modified plugin option values in wp_options rows associated with grandconference-custom-post.
Newly registered subscriber accounts immediately followed by privileged plugin actions.

Detection Strategies

Review WordPress audit logs for plugin actions executed by non-admin user IDs.
Inspect web server access logs for repeated requests to plugin AJAX actions with action= parameters tied to Grand Conference handlers.
Compare installed plugin version against 2.6.4 across all WordPress sites in the environment.

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable a WordPress activity logging plugin and forward events to a central SIEM for correlation.
Alert on capability mismatches where subscriber or contributor accounts trigger admin-only plugin endpoints.
Baseline normal request volume to admin-ajax.php and flag deviations from authenticated low-privilege users.

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-60116

Immediate Actions Required

Update the Grand Conference Theme Custom Post Type plugin to version 2.6.4 or later on every affected WordPress instance.
Audit existing WordPress user accounts and remove unused or suspicious low-privilege registrations.
Disable open user registration if it is not required by the site.
Review recent plugin-managed content and configuration for unauthorized changes.

Patch Information

The vendor addressed the broken access control issue in grandconference-custom-post version 2.6.4. Administrators should upgrade through the WordPress plugin manager or by replacing the plugin files directly. Confirm the patched version is active by checking the plugin listing in wp-admin/plugins.php. Details are documented in the Patchstack advisory.

Workarounds

Deactivate the Grand Conference Theme Custom Post Type plugin until the patch can be applied.
Restrict access to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php and /wp-admin/admin-post.php using a web application firewall rule that blocks Grand Conference plugin actions from non-administrator sessions.
Temporarily downgrade existing low-privilege accounts or disable new user registration to reduce the authenticated attack surface.

bash

# Update the plugin via WP-CLI
wp plugin update grandconference-custom-post --version=2.6.4

# Verify the installed version
wp plugin get grandconference-custom-post --field=version