CVE-2025-59583

Vulnerability

Overview

The Penci Filter Everything plugin for WordPress versions prior to 1.7 contains a DOM-based Cross-Site Scripting vulnerability due to improper neutralization of user input during page generation. This flaw arises because user-supplied data is not properly sanitized before being used to dynamically construct the DOM, enabling an attacker to inject arbitrary JavaScript code that executes in the context of a victim's browser session [1].

Exploitation

Details

Exploitation requires a privileged user— such as an administrator or editor—to interact with a crafted link or page that contains the malicious payload. The attack is delivered via an HTTP request that includes the XSS payload, which the plugin then embeds directly into the page output. Since the vulnerability is DOM-based, the injected script runs client-side and can bypass certain server-side filters. The attacker does not need elevated privileges to craft the exploit, but successful compromise depends on a privileged user performing an action like clicking a link or visiting a specially prepared page [1].

Impact

A successful exploit allows the attacker to execute arbitrary JavaScript within the site's origin. Common attack objectives include injecting malicious redirects, unwanted advertisements, or other HTML payloads that execute when other users visit the site. The attacker could also steal session cookies, exfiltrate sensitive data, or perform actions on behalf of the victim user. The widespread use of such vulnerabilities in mass-exploit campaigns increases the risk to all sites running the vulnerable plugin version [1].

Mitigation

The vendor has released version 1.7 to address the vulnerability. All users are strongly advised to update to 1.7 or later immediately. Plugin administrators can enable automatic updates to protect against future flaws. If updating is not immediately possible, consult your hosting provider or web developer for interim measures. At the time of publication, no workaround beyond the update has been disclosed [1].