Urgent: Easy Elementor Addons (≤ 2.2.7) — Broken Access Control (CVE-2025-54712)

Author: Hong Kong Security Expert
Published: 14 August 2025

Summary

A broken access control vulnerability (CVE-2025-54712) affecting the Easy Elementor Addons WordPress plugin, versions ≤ 2.2.7, was publicly disclosed and fixed in version 2.2.8. The issue allows an authenticated low-privilege user (Subscriber role) to trigger functionality normally reserved for higher-privileged roles because the plugin fails to enforce proper authorization checks and/or nonce validation on one or more entry points.

The vulnerability was responsibly disclosed by a security researcher (credited below). The reported CVSS score is 4.3 (Low), but even low-severity access control flaws can be leveraged in multi-stage attack chains. This advisory expands on the public report and provides practical detection, mitigation and hardening guidance from the perspective of an operational security practitioner.

Credits: Researcher Denver Jackson (reported 27 July 2025)
CVE: CVE-2025-54712
Affected versions: ≤ 2.2.7
Fixed in: 2.2.8
Required privilege: Subscriber (authenticated, low privilege)
Patch priority: Low — update recommended

What is “Broken Access Control” in WordPress plugins?

Broken access control means the plugin allows an operation to be executed without confirming the caller is authorized to perform that operation. Typical failures include:

• Missing or incorrect current_user_can() checks.
• No nonce verification (check_admin_referer() / wp_verify_nonce()) for state-changing requests.
• Functions exposed via front-end AJAX (admin-ajax.php / WP REST API) that accept requests from any authenticated user (or unauthenticated) without capability checks.
• Relying on client-side or obscurity (hidden form fields) rather than server-side authorization.

In WordPress this often translates to subscribers being able to trigger actions reserved for administrators, such as modifying plugin settings, creating content with elevated meta, or triggering server-side behavior that should be restricted.

Why this vulnerability matters (even if rated “Low”)

• Access control issues are frequently used as building blocks in broader compromises. An attacker that can modify plugin behavior or create content may escalate to social engineering, persistent backdoors, or data leakage.
• The vulnerability is exploitable remotely by an authenticated user (Subscriber). Many sites allow user registration or have subscriber accounts (commenters, members), increasing the attack surface.
• Because the issue can be triggered without administrator credentials, automated scanners and opportunistic attackers may include this flaw in scans and exploit attempts.
• The risk is context dependent: on a single-author site with no subscriber accounts the practical risk is lower. On community sites, membership sites, or sites using front-end user registration, the threat is materially higher.

Typical exploitation scenarios

1. Malicious subscriber writes content that looks legitimate: A subscriber can create a post or modify a widget where the plugin stores extra metadata. The attacker includes malicious markup or hidden links that later get published with elevated privileges.
2. Subscriber triggers plugin configuration action: An authenticated subscriber can call an exposed AJAX action to enable/disable features or create a webhook URL that leaks data. These changes can alter site behavior in surprising ways.
3. Privilege escalation via chained bugs: The access control flaw is combined with another weakness (e.g., XSS in a settings page) to escalate privileges or persist malicious scripts.
4. Data exfiltration and reconnaissance: If an exposed endpoint returns sensitive information, an attacker with subscriber access can harvest data that they normally wouldn’t be able to access.

What the public report tells us (concise)

• Vulnerability type: Broken Access Control (OWASP A1)
• CVSS: 4.3 (Low)
• Affected plugin: Easy Elementor Addons
• Vulnerable versions: ≤ 2.2.7
• Fixed in: 2.2.8
• Attacker privilege: Subscriber
• Researcher: Denver Jackson
• Disclosure timeline: Reported 27 Jul 2025; published 14 Aug 2025

Based on the classification and required privilege, the plugin likely exposed at least one server-side action that performs higher-privileged tasks without validating current_user_can() or verifying a nonce.

Immediate actions for WordPress site owners

1. Update the plugin to 2.2.8 or later immediately. This is the definitive fix. Apply updates on staging first if you manage a critical site.
2. If you cannot update immediately, apply temporary mitigations (virtual patching). Consider blocking vulnerable endpoints at the web server or application level, or add temporary server-side permission checks (examples below).
3. Audit user accounts and roles. Remove or reassign any suspicious subscriber accounts. Enforce email verification for new registrations.
4. Harden user registration and capabilities. Disable open user registration if not needed. Use custom code to reduce Subscriber capabilities where possible.
5. Monitor logs and scan for suspicious activity. Look for unexpected admin-ajax.php calls, unusual REST API requests, and sudden content changes.
6. Post-update verification. After updating to 2.2.8, validate that the plugin endpoints enforce correct authorization and nonces.

Technical mitigations & virtual patches

If you manage many sites or cannot update immediately, virtual patching is effective. The following patterns can be implemented at the web server, WAF, or as site-level code. Adapt these to the specific plugin endpoints.

A. WAF / server rule patterns (conceptual)

1. Block unauthenticated or low-privileged requests to plugin endpoints that should be admin-only:
   • Target: /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with action parameter matching plugin actions (e.g., names containing the plugin slug).
   • Condition: authenticated user role is Subscriber (or nonce header absent) OR referer missing.
   • Action: block or return 403.
2. Rate limit or CAPTCHA-protect endpoints that accept state-changing input: apply throttling or challenge responses for repeated admin-ajax.php calls per IP or per user.
3. Block front-end requests where the HTTP body contains suspicious parameters indicating configuration changes; require these requests to come from an admin session.

Example ModSecurity-style pseudo rule (adjust to your WAF syntax):

# Block suspicious admin-ajax calls to plugin actions
SecRule REQUEST_URI "@contains /admin-ajax.php" "phase:2,chain,deny,status:403,msg:'Block potential broken access control exploit - plugin action'
    SecRule ARGS:action "@rx (easy_elementor|eea_|easy_elm)""
  

B. WordPress hotfix (temporary server-side check)

Add the following as a site-specific plugin or mu-plugin to force a capability check on AJAX actions resembling the plugin slug. Replace action patterns as appropriate. Remove after upgrading to 2.2.8.

<?php
// mu-plugin: 000-easy-elementor-mitigation.php
add_action( 'admin_init', function() {
    if ( defined( 'DOING_AJAX' ) && DOING_AJAX ) {
        $action = isset( $_REQUEST['action'] ) ? sanitize_text_field( wp_unslash( $_REQUEST['action'] ) ) : '';
        // Replace pattern with plugin action names or plugin slug
        if ( preg_match( '/(easy_elementor|eea_|easy-elm)/i', $action ) ) {
            // If not an admin, block
            if ( ! current_user_can( 'manage_options' ) ) {
                wp_send_json_error( [ 'message' => 'Forbidden' ], 403 );
                exit;
            }
            // Optional: enforce nonce for added safety
            /*
            if ( empty( $_REQUEST['_wpnonce'] ) || ! wp_verify_nonce( $_REQUEST['_wpnonce'], 'expected-nonce' ) ) {
                wp_send_json_error( ['message' => 'Invalid nonce'], 403 );
                exit;
            }
            */
        }
    }
}, 1 );
?>
  

C. Hardening nonces and permission checks in plugin code

If you maintain a fork or must patch in-place:

• Ensure any function registered via add_action(‘wp_ajax_…’) checks a valid nonce via check_admin_referer() or wp_verify_nonce() for state-changing actions, and uses current_user_can() with an appropriate capability.
• For REST API endpoints, use permission_callback to validate capabilities and nonces.

Example handler skeleton:

add_action( 'wp_ajax_my_plugin_update', function() {
    check_admin_referer( 'my_plugin_update_nonce' );
    if ( ! current_user_can( 'manage_options' ) ) {
        wp_send_json_error( [ 'message' => 'Insufficient permissions' ], 403 );
    }
    // safe processing...
});

Detection: what to look for in logs

• Requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with action parameters that relate to the plugin and originate from non-admin users.
• POST requests to plugin endpoint URIs where the referer is empty or does not match a protected admin page, particularly from authenticated subscribers.
• Unexpected changes in plugin settings, widget options or injected content authored by low-privilege accounts.
• Repeated attempts from a single IP or accounts to call the same AJAX action.

Sample log search queries:

• Nginx access log: grep "admin-ajax.php" access.log | grep "action=eea_"
• Apache combined log: search for /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php and inspect POST bodies for suspicious action values.
• WordPress debug log (if enabled): look for plugin errors or warnings during AJAX handling.

Post-exploit cleanup checklist

1. Isolate involved account(s) — change passwords and invalidate sessions.
2. Rotate admin passwords and review the admin user list.
3. Restore from a clean backup prior to the suspicious activity if you detect data integrity issues.
4. Search for backdoors or unauthorized admin users. Check plugins, themes, mu-plugins, and the uploads folder for unexpected PHP files.
5. Review server logs for suspicious requests and extract indicators of compromise (IoCs): IPs, user agents, endpoints.
6. Update the plugin and all core/plugins/themes to the latest versions.
7. Perform a site malware scan and consider professional incident response if the site hosts sensitive data.

Why a Web Application Firewall (WAF) helps — what to configure

A well-configured WAF can reduce risk by blocking exploit attempts before they reach the application, and is useful as a temporary mitigation while you apply vendor patches. Suggested protections:

• Virtual patching: add rules to block the vulnerable plugin endpoints until the vendor patch is applied.
• Behavioral rules: detect abnormal patterns like subscribers performing state-changing POSTs or repeatedly invoking admin endpoints.
• Rate limiting: reduce ability for automated scanners or exploitation scripts to enumerate endpoints.
• Session and IP reputation: throttle or challenge newly registered accounts performing suspicious operations.
• File integrity monitoring: alert on new PHP files in writable plugin/theme directories or unusual modifications.

Use these measures as temporary controls. They are not substitutes for applying the vendor patch and verifying the fix.

Practical recommendations for site administrators

1. Inventory & prioritize: Identify every site that uses Easy Elementor Addons and determine user registration policies for each site. Prioritize high-traffic and multi-user sites.
2. Patch management: Test plugin updates in staging. Confirm compatibility with your theme and other plugins. Schedule updates outside peak hours and have rollback procedures.
3. Least privilege: Ensure Subscriber role cannot create posts, upload files, or access admin screens. Use capability management to strip unnecessary permissions.
4. Secure registrations: Enable email verification and admin approval for new registrations where possible. Use CAPTCHA or honeypots to deter automated account creation.
5. Audit and monitoring: Enable activity logging for user actions and monitor AJAX/REST traffic.
6. Backup and recovery: Maintain daily backups with offsite retention and test restores regularly.
7. Harden WordPress: Disable file editing via WP config (define('DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT', true);), keep software up to date, and limit /wp-admin/ access where practical.

Guidance for developers and plugin authors

• Review all AJAX handlers (wp_ajax_ and wp_ajax_nopriv_) and confirm whether handlers change state or return sensitive information, and ensure proper nonce and capability checks.
• For REST API endpoints, implement a non-trivial permission_callback that enforces capability checks.
• Consider adding integration tests asserting only users with expected capabilities can call specific endpoints.
• Document the expected authorization model clearly in developer documentation.

Conservative rule set (human readable)

• Block: POST requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php where action matches plugin aliases and the session user role is Subscriber or unauthenticated.
• Challenge: Any front-end request that attempts to update plugin settings should require a valid nonce; if missing, return 403.
• Alert & rate limit: More than X calls to a plugin action within Y seconds from the same IP should trigger throttling and an alert.

Tune these rules to avoid blocking legitimate front-end interactions; remove them after the official patch is installed.

Testing and validation after remediation

1. After updating to 2.2.8, validate that previously blocked requests are now either properly authorized or rejected with appropriate HTTP status codes (403).
2. Re-run automated and manual scans to confirm the specific access control issue is closed.
3. Confirm user experience: ensure legitimate subscribers can still perform expected actions without disruption.
4. Verify temporary rules: remove overly broad virtual patches and replace them with narrower controls if needed.

FAQ

Q: My site doesn’t allow user registration — am I safe?
A: If you have no subscriber accounts, the risk is lower. However, check for imported low-privilege accounts and remember that chained vulnerabilities can alter risk profiles. Update regardless where possible.

Q: Can I just delete the plugin instead of updating?
A: If you do not use the plugin, remove it entirely. Deactivation reduces risk but uninstalling is safer when functionality is not needed.

Q: Are there exploit PoCs available?
A: Public exploitation details are sometimes published after disclosure. The safest action is immediate patching or applying temporary mitigations rather than attempting reproduction on production systems.

Q: How long can I rely on temporary mitigations?
A: Temporary mitigations (server rules, WAF) are useful bridges until vendor patches are applied and verified. They are not long-term substitutes for applying official fixes.

Incident response playbook (concise)

1. Patch the plugin to 2.2.8.
2. Revoke sessions and force password resets for suspicious accounts.
3. Conduct a forensic review of logs and uploaded files.
4. Restore from a clean backup if integrity is in doubt.
5. Harden access controls and monitor for further anomalies.
6. Document the incident, mitigation steps, and lessons learned.

Closing thoughts from a Hong Kong security perspective

Broken access control remains a common and impactful vulnerability class. It may appear low risk in isolation but can be exploited in combination with other weaknesses. Prioritise updating the plugin, verify fixes in staging, and apply temporary mitigations where immediate updates are not possible. Treat each reported access control issue as an opportunity to improve your overall privilege model: enforce least privilege, validate nonces, restrict registrations, and maintain continuous monitoring.

Appendix — Practical quick checklist

• Identify sites running Easy Elementor Addons ≤ 2.2.7
• Update to 2.2.8 (test on staging first)
• If unable to update immediately, enable virtual patch rules to block plugin actions from low-privilege users
• Audit Subscriber accounts and registration settings
• Enable activity logging and monitor admin-ajax and REST endpoints
• Remove unused plugins and perform a full site scan
• After remediation, revalidate functionality and remove temporary rules that are no longer necessary

If you require assistance crafting targeted mitigations or conducting an incident review, consider engaging a qualified security professional or incident response team. Rapid, tested patching remains the most effective control.