CVE-2025-54352 in WordPress
Summary
by MITRE • 07/21/2025
WordPress 3.5 through 6.8.2 allows remote attackers to guess titles of private and draft posts via pingback.ping XML-RPC requests. NOTE: the Supplier is not changing this behavior.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/21/2025
This vulnerability exists within the WordPress content management system affecting versions 3.5 through 6.8.2 where remote attackers can exploit the pingback.ping XML-RPC endpoint to enumerate private and draft post titles. The flaw stems from insufficient access control validation within the XML-RPC interface, specifically in how the system handles pingback requests for content that should remain restricted to authorized users only. When a pingback.ping request is processed, the system fails to properly verify whether the requesting entity has appropriate permissions to access the targeted post, allowing unauthorized enumeration of content that would normally be protected by draft or private status restrictions.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability falls under CWE-284 which describes inadequate access control mechanisms, specifically in the context of XML-RPC endpoint handling. Attackers can leverage this weakness by sending specially crafted pingback.ping requests to the XML-RPC endpoint, which will return information about post titles even when those posts are marked as private or draft status. This represents a significant information disclosure vulnerability that violates fundamental security principles of content access control and confidentiality. The attack vector operates through the standard XML-RPC protocol which WordPress uses for remote publishing and communication, making it accessible to anyone who can reach the target WordPress installation's XML-RPC endpoint.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure as it provides attackers with valuable intelligence about unpublished content, potentially exposing sensitive data or planned releases that have not yet been made public. This enumeration capability could enable more sophisticated attacks such as targeted social engineering campaigns, content scraping for competitive intelligence, or the identification of vulnerabilities in unpublished posts that might contain security flaws. The vulnerability particularly affects content creators and organizations that rely on WordPress for managing confidential information, as it undermines the basic assumption that private and draft content remains inaccessible to unauthorized users. The fact that the vendor has chosen not to modify this behavior means that organizations must implement additional protective measures to mitigate the risk.
Organizations should implement multiple layers of defense to address this vulnerability including restricting access to XML-RPC endpoints through firewall rules, implementing rate limiting and authentication controls, and disabling XML-RPC functionality entirely if it is not required for legitimate business operations. Network segmentation and monitoring of XML-RPC access patterns can help detect potential exploitation attempts. Additionally, regular security audits should verify that private and draft content remains properly restricted and that no unauthorized enumeration of content occurs through alternative attack vectors. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper access control implementation and demonstrates how seemingly minor protocol handling issues can lead to significant information disclosure risks in content management systems. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls to monitor and block suspicious XML-RPC requests that attempt to access restricted content.