CVE-2025-28866 in Login Logger Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 03/11/2025
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in smerriman Login Logger allows Cross Site Request Forgery. This issue affects Login Logger: from n/a through 1.2.1.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/12/2025
The CVE-2025-28866 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within the smerriman Login Logger plugin, a WordPress authentication logging solution. This vulnerability enables malicious actors to perform unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users without their knowledge or consent. The issue exists across all versions from the initial release through version 1.2.1, indicating a long-standing security gap that has not been properly addressed. The vulnerability stems from the plugin's failure to implement proper anti-CSRF mechanisms, specifically the absence of anti-CSRF tokens in critical user actions such as login logging and authentication-related operations. This weakness allows attackers to craft malicious requests that can manipulate the plugin's functionality and potentially compromise user authentication data. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.002 for credential access through social engineering attacks that exploit CSRF vulnerabilities. The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data manipulation, as it can enable attackers to monitor, log, or even manipulate user login sessions, potentially leading to full account compromise and unauthorized access to sensitive system resources. Given that the plugin is designed for authentication logging purposes, this vulnerability creates a dangerous situation where an attacker can exploit the very functionality meant to enhance security to undermine it. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects the fundamental authentication process, making it an attractive target for attackers seeking to establish persistent access to WordPress installations. The lack of proper CSRF protection in this authentication-related plugin creates a significant risk that could be exploited in conjunction with other attacks, potentially leading to complete system compromise. Organizations using this plugin should immediately assess their exposure and implement mitigations to prevent exploitation of this critical vulnerability. The vulnerability demonstrates a common pattern in web application security where authentication and logging components fail to properly validate request origins, creating opportunities for attackers to bypass security controls. This flaw represents a failure in the principle of least privilege and proper input validation, as the plugin does not adequately verify that requests originate from legitimate sources. The attack surface for this vulnerability includes any authenticated user session within the WordPress environment, making it particularly dangerous in multi-user environments where privilege escalation could occur through successful CSRF exploitation. Security professionals should consider this vulnerability as part of a broader assessment of WordPress plugin security practices, as it highlights the importance of implementing robust anti-CSRF measures in all authentication-related functionality.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability occurs when the Login Logger plugin fails to generate and validate anti-CSRF tokens for critical operations. The vulnerability is present in the plugin's handling of user authentication events and logging activities, where requests are processed without proper origin validation or token verification. Attackers can exploit this by crafting malicious HTML pages or leveraging existing cross-site scripting vulnerabilities to trick authenticated users into performing unintended actions within the context of their authenticated sessions. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it operates at the authentication layer, meaning that successful exploitation could allow attackers to manipulate login records, potentially creating false authentication logs that could be used for further attacks or to obscure malicious activities. The plugin's failure to implement proper CSRF protection mechanisms means that any user who accesses malicious content while authenticated to a WordPress site using this plugin could have their session hijacked or manipulated. This vulnerability is especially concerning in enterprise environments where login logging is critical for security monitoring and compliance requirements, as attackers could manipulate these logs to hide their activities or create false positives that could confuse security analysts. The vulnerability's persistence across multiple versions suggests a fundamental design flaw rather than a simple coding error, indicating that the developers may not have properly understood or implemented CSRF protection mechanisms. This flaw creates a significant risk for organizations that rely on comprehensive logging for security monitoring, as the integrity of the logging data becomes compromised. The vulnerability also aligns with ATT&CK tactic TA0006 (credential access) and technique T1566.002, as it enables attackers to exploit user sessions and potentially gain unauthorized access to systems through manipulation of authentication logs.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2025-28866 should focus on immediate remediation actions including plugin updates to versions that properly implement CSRF protection mechanisms. Organizations should implement comprehensive CSRF token validation across all user-facing authentication and logging functions within the WordPress environment. The recommended approach involves deploying proper anti-CSRF token generation and validation processes that ensure all requests originating from authenticated sessions are properly verified and authenticated. Security teams should also consider implementing additional monitoring and detection mechanisms that can identify anomalous patterns in login logging activities that may indicate CSRF exploitation attempts. Network-level protections such as web application firewalls can provide additional layers of defense by detecting and blocking suspicious cross-site requests that attempt to manipulate the plugin functionality. Organizations should also conduct thorough security assessments of all installed WordPress plugins to identify similar vulnerabilities that may exist in other components of their web infrastructure. The implementation of proper CSRF protection should include the generation of unique tokens for each user session that are validated on every critical operation, ensuring that requests cannot be replayed or forged by attackers. Regular security audits should be conducted to verify that anti-CSRF mechanisms are properly implemented and functioning as intended. The vulnerability also underscores the importance of keeping all WordPress plugins up to date with the latest security patches, as many CSRF vulnerabilities are resolved through simple updates that implement proper security controls. Security teams should establish processes for rapid vulnerability response and patch deployment to minimize exposure windows for known vulnerabilities. Additionally, implementing proper access controls and least privilege principles can help limit the potential impact of successful CSRF exploitation attempts. The overall security posture of WordPress installations can be significantly improved by ensuring that all authentication-related plugins implement robust CSRF protection mechanisms that prevent unauthorized manipulation of user sessions and authentication data.