CVE-2025-2526 in Streamit Theme
Summary
by MITRE • 04/08/2025
The Streamit theme for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation via account takeover in all versions up to, and including, 4.0.2. This is due to the plugin not properly validating a user's identity prior to updating their details like email in the 'st_Authentication_Controller::edit_profile' function. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to change arbitrary user's email addresses, including administrators, and leverage that to reset the user's password and gain access to their account.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/08/2025
The Streamit theme for WordPress presents a critical privilege escalation vulnerability through account takeover capabilities that affects all versions up to and including 4.0.2. This vulnerability stems from insufficient user identity validation within the st_Authentication_Controller::edit_profile function, creating a fundamental security flaw that allows unauthenticated attackers to manipulate user account details. The issue represents a direct violation of authentication and authorization principles that are essential for maintaining secure user sessions and protecting sensitive account information. The vulnerability manifests when attackers can modify email addresses associated with arbitrary user accounts without proper authentication, effectively bypassing the standard WordPress user verification mechanisms that should prevent such unauthorized modifications.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability follows a systematic approach that begins with identifying target user accounts and leveraging the missing validation checks to change email addresses. When an attacker successfully modifies a user's email address, particularly an administrator account, they can then initiate a password reset process using the compromised email address. This creates a chain of events that ultimately allows full account compromise and unauthorized access to the affected user's privileges and data. The flaw exists at the application logic level within the authentication controller, where proper session validation and user identity verification are bypassed, making it possible for any attacker to manipulate account details regardless of their authentication status.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple account compromise, as it enables attackers to escalate their privileges and potentially gain administrative control over WordPress installations. Once an attacker has successfully changed an administrator's email address, they can leverage this to reset passwords and assume complete control of the compromised account. This creates a significant risk for WordPress sites that rely on the Streamit theme, as it allows unauthorized individuals to gain elevated privileges and potentially compromise entire websites. The vulnerability's severity is amplified by the fact that it affects all versions up to 4.0.2, meaning that a large number of installations could be vulnerable and potentially exploited by threat actors. The implications include potential data breaches, unauthorized content modification, and complete loss of administrative control over affected systems.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate attention through patching and updating the Streamit theme to a version that addresses the authentication bypass flaw. Organizations should implement immediate monitoring for unauthorized email address changes and establish automated alerts for suspicious account modifications. The recommended approach includes updating to the latest available version of the Streamit theme that contains proper user validation and authentication checks. Additionally, administrators should consider implementing additional security measures such as two-factor authentication, monitoring for unusual account activity, and reviewing user permissions regularly. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-287 which addresses improper authentication issues, and represents a clear violation of ATT&CK technique T1078 for Valid Accounts and T1531 for Account Access Removal. Security teams should also implement network-level monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts and ensure that all WordPress installations maintain current security patches to prevent similar vulnerabilities from being exploited in the future.