CVE-2025-7038: LatePoint WordPress Auth Bypass Flaw

CVE-2025-7038 Overview

The LatePoint plugin for WordPress contains an Authentication Bypass vulnerability due to insufficient identity verification within the steps__load_step route of the latepoint_route_call AJAX endpoint. This vulnerability affects all versions up to and including 5.1.94. The vulnerable endpoint reads client-supplied customer email and related customer fields before invoking the internal login handler without properly verifying login status, capability checks, or validating an AJAX nonce. This design flaw allows unauthenticated attackers to bypass authentication and log into any customer's account without providing valid credentials.

Critical Impact

Unauthenticated attackers can bypass authentication mechanisms and gain unauthorized access to any customer account on WordPress sites running vulnerable versions of LatePoint plugin, potentially exposing sensitive customer data and booking information.

Affected Products

• LatePoint plugin for WordPress versions up to and including 5.1.94
• WordPress sites with LatePoint booking functionality enabled
• Customer accounts managed through LatePoint's appointment scheduling system

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-09-30 - CVE CVE-2025-7038 published to NVD
• 2026-04-15 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-7038

Vulnerability Analysis

This Authentication Bypass vulnerability (CWE-288: Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel) exists in the LatePoint WordPress plugin's AJAX endpoint handling mechanism. The vulnerability stems from the steps__load_step route within the latepoint_route_call function failing to implement proper authentication verification before processing customer login requests.

When a user interacts with the booking flow, the endpoint accepts customer-supplied data including email addresses and related customer fields. The critical flaw is that this data is processed and passed to the internal login handler without first validating whether the request comes from an authenticated session, checking user capabilities, or verifying a valid WordPress AJAX nonce token. This creates a direct authentication bypass path that attackers can exploit.

The attack can be executed remotely over the network without requiring any prior authentication or user interaction, making it particularly dangerous for production WordPress sites utilizing LatePoint for appointment scheduling.

Root Cause

The root cause of CVE-2025-7038 lies in missing authentication checks within the steps_controller.php file. The steps__load_step route processes customer identity information without implementing the standard WordPress security patterns:

1. Missing Nonce Verification: The endpoint does not call check_ajax_referer() or wp_verify_nonce() to validate the request authenticity
2. Absent Login Status Check: No invocation of is_user_logged_in() or equivalent verification before processing customer credentials
3. Missing Capability Check: The endpoint fails to verify user permissions via current_user_can() before executing privileged operations

This combination of missing security controls allows attackers to craft malicious requests that directly invoke the login handler with arbitrary customer email addresses.

Attack Vector

The attack leverages the network-accessible AJAX endpoint exposed through WordPress's admin-ajax.php interface. An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by:

1. Identifying a target WordPress site running a vulnerable LatePoint version
2. Crafting a POST request to the wp-admin/admin-ajax.php endpoint with the action parameter set to latepoint_route_call
3. Specifying the steps__load_step route with a target customer's email address
4. The vulnerable endpoint processes this request without authentication verification
5. The internal login handler is invoked, establishing an authenticated session for the specified customer

The exploitation requires no user interaction and can be performed entirely by unauthenticated remote attackers. For additional technical details, refer to the Wordfence Vulnerability Report and the steps_controller.php source code.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-7038

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual POST requests to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with action=latepoint_route_call from unexpected IP addresses
• Multiple rapid authentication events for different customer accounts originating from the same source
• Customer session tokens being created without corresponding legitimate booking flow activity
• Anomalous access to customer account data outside of normal business patterns

Detection Strategies

• Monitor web application firewall (WAF) logs for suspicious AJAX requests targeting the latepoint_route_call action
• Implement rate limiting on authentication-related AJAX endpoints to detect brute-force account enumeration attempts
• Deploy log analysis rules to correlate unusual customer login patterns with absence of corresponding form submissions
• Configure intrusion detection systems to alert on POST requests containing the vulnerable route parameters

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed WordPress authentication logging to track all customer login events with source IP information
• Set up alerts for customer accounts accessed from geographic locations inconsistent with normal user patterns
• Review LatePoint booking activity logs for sessions created without associated booking completion
• Implement real-time monitoring of AJAX endpoint traffic volume to identify automated exploitation attempts

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-7038

Immediate Actions Required

• Update the LatePoint plugin to the latest patched version beyond 5.1.94 immediately
• Review customer account activity logs for signs of unauthorized access during the exposure window
• Consider temporarily disabling the LatePoint plugin if an immediate update is not possible
• Notify affected customers if suspicious activity is detected and recommend password resets
• Implement additional WAF rules to filter malicious requests targeting the vulnerable endpoint

Patch Information

The vulnerability has been addressed in versions after 5.1.94 of the LatePoint plugin. Site administrators should update through the WordPress plugin repository or download the patched version from the official LatePoint plugin page. The security patch implements proper nonce verification and authentication checks within the steps__load_step route. Details of the fix can be reviewed in the WordPress plugin changeset.

Workarounds

• Implement Web Application Firewall rules to block unauthenticated requests to the latepoint_route_call AJAX endpoint
• Restrict access to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php by IP address if the booking system is only used internally
• Add server-level rate limiting on POST requests to the admin-ajax.php endpoint
• Consider implementing additional authentication layers such as CAPTCHA on customer login flows

# Apache .htaccess example - restrict AJAX access (temporary workaround)
<Files "admin-ajax.php">
    <IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
        RewriteEngine On
        RewriteCond %{REQUEST_METHOD} POST
        RewriteCond %{QUERY_STRING} action=latepoint_route_call [NC]
        RewriteCond %{HTTP:X-Requested-With} !XMLHttpRequest
        RewriteRule ^ - [F,L]
    </IfModule>
</Files>