CVE-2026-25337: Coachify WordPress Plugin CSRF Vulnerability

CVE-2026-25337 Overview

A Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability has been identified in the Coachify WordPress theme developed by wpcoachify. This vulnerability allows attackers to trick authenticated users into performing unintended actions on the WordPress site without their knowledge or consent. The flaw exists in versions up to and including 1.1.5 of the Coachify theme.

CSRF attacks exploit the trust that a web application has in a user's browser. When a user is authenticated to a WordPress site using the vulnerable Coachify theme, an attacker can craft malicious requests that will be executed with the victim's privileges, potentially leading to unauthorized modifications of site settings, content manipulation, or other administrative actions.

Critical Impact

Attackers can exploit this CSRF vulnerability to perform unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated WordPress administrators, potentially compromising site integrity and availability.

Affected Products

• Coachify WordPress Theme versions through 1.1.5
• WordPress installations using vulnerable Coachify theme versions
• Sites with authenticated administrative users accessing untrusted content

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-19 - CVE CVE-2026-25337 published to NVD
• 2026-02-19 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-25337

Vulnerability Analysis

This Cross-Site Request Forgery vulnerability (CWE-352) exists in the Coachify WordPress theme due to insufficient or missing nonce validation in certain request handlers. WordPress themes and plugins are expected to implement nonce tokens to verify that requests originate from legitimate user actions within the WordPress admin interface.

When nonce validation is absent or improperly implemented, attackers can craft HTML pages or scripts that automatically submit requests to the vulnerable WordPress installation. If an authenticated administrator visits the attacker's malicious page while logged into their WordPress site, the browser will automatically include session cookies with the forged request, causing the server to process it as a legitimate authenticated action.

The network-based attack vector requires user interaction—specifically, the victim must visit a malicious page or click a crafted link while authenticated to the WordPress site. This interaction requirement slightly reduces the immediate exploitability but remains a significant concern given the prevalence of phishing and social engineering tactics.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability is the failure to implement proper anti-CSRF protections within the Coachify theme's form handlers and AJAX endpoints. WordPress provides built-in CSRF protection through its nonce system, which generates cryptographic tokens that must be validated before processing sensitive requests. The vulnerable code paths in Coachify versions 1.1.5 and earlier do not properly verify these nonce tokens, allowing cross-origin requests to be processed as if they were legitimate.

Proper implementation requires using WordPress functions like wp_nonce_field() when generating forms and wp_verify_nonce() or check_admin_referer() when processing form submissions and AJAX requests.

Attack Vector

The attack vector for this CSRF vulnerability follows a classic exploitation pattern:

1. The attacker identifies a vulnerable endpoint or form action in the Coachify theme that lacks proper nonce validation
2. The attacker crafts a malicious HTML page containing a hidden form or JavaScript that submits a request to the target endpoint
3. The attacker distributes the malicious page via phishing emails, compromised websites, or social media
4. When an authenticated WordPress administrator visits the malicious page, their browser automatically submits the forged request with their session cookies
5. The WordPress server processes the request with the victim's administrative privileges, executing the attacker's intended action

The vulnerability requires the victim to have an active authenticated session with the WordPress site, making social engineering an essential component of successful exploitation.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-25337

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected changes to WordPress theme settings or site configurations without corresponding admin activity logs
• HTTP requests to Coachify theme endpoints from external referrer domains
• Administrative actions logged in WordPress audit logs that do not correlate with known administrator activity
• Presence of unusual browser redirects or iframe content on third-party sites targeting your WordPress installation

Detection Strategies

• Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block requests to sensitive endpoints lacking proper referrer headers
• Enable comprehensive WordPress audit logging to track all administrative actions and identify unauthorized modifications
• Monitor access logs for POST requests to theme-specific endpoints from unexpected origins or with missing/invalid nonce parameters
• Deploy endpoint detection solutions to identify malicious pages attempting to forge requests to your WordPress installation

Monitoring Recommendations

• Configure SentinelOne to monitor for anomalous web traffic patterns targeting WordPress installations
• Set up alerts for administrative changes to the Coachify theme configuration outside of maintenance windows
• Review WordPress audit logs regularly for unexplained configuration changes or user modifications
• Implement Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to restrict where forms can be submitted

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-25337

Immediate Actions Required

• Update the Coachify theme to a patched version when released by the vendor
• Implement additional CSRF protection at the web server or WAF level until a patch is available
• Educate administrators about phishing risks and advise caution when clicking links while logged into WordPress
• Consider temporarily deactivating the Coachify theme if critical functionality is not dependent on it

Patch Information

Security researchers at Patchstack have documented this vulnerability. Users should monitor the Patchstack WordPress Vulnerability Database for updated patch information and vendor advisories. Upgrade to a version higher than 1.1.5 when available.

Workarounds

• Implement a web application firewall (WAF) with CSRF protection rules to validate referrer headers and block suspicious cross-origin requests
• Restrict administrative access to trusted IP addresses using WordPress security plugins or server-level firewall rules
• Use browser extensions that isolate browsing sessions or enforce strict referrer policies
• Consider using a security plugin that adds additional nonce validation layers to WordPress themes

# Example: Restrict WordPress admin access to specific IP addresses via .htaccess
# Add to WordPress root .htaccess file
<Files wp-login.php>
    Order Deny,Allow
    Deny from all
    Allow from 192.168.1.0/24
    Allow from 10.0.0.0/8
</Files>