CVE-2025-6054 in YANewsflash Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 07/23/2025
The YANewsflash plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Cross-Site Request Forgery in all versions up to, and including, 1.0.3. This is due to missing or incorrect nonce validation on the 'yanewsflash/yanewsflash.php' page. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to update settings and inject malicious web scripts via a forged request granted they can trick a site administrator into performing an action such as clicking on a link.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/23/2025
The CVE-2025-6054 vulnerability affects the YANewsflash plugin for WordPress, representing a critical cross-site request forgery weakness that compromises the integrity of affected websites. This vulnerability exists in all plugin versions up to and including 1.0.3, making it a persistent threat across multiple releases. The flaw specifically resides in the yanewsflash/yanewsflash.php page where proper nonce validation mechanisms are either missing or incorrectly implemented, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the plugin's functionality without proper authentication.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the absence of proper cryptographic token validation within the plugin's administrative interface. Nonces serve as one-time cryptographic tokens that verify the authenticity of requests originating from legitimate administrative sessions. When these tokens are not properly validated or are entirely absent, attackers can craft malicious requests that appear to come from authenticated administrators. This weakness directly aligns with CWE-352, which categorizes cross-site request forgery vulnerabilities as those lacking proper validation of request sources and authenticity.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data manipulation, as it enables attackers to inject malicious web scripts into affected websites. Unauthenticated attackers can leverage this weakness to update plugin settings, potentially altering content delivery, redirecting users to malicious sites, or establishing persistent backdoors. The requirement for social engineering through administrator trickery does not diminish the severity, as even a single compromised administrator session can result in significant compromise of the entire website. This vulnerability falls under the ATT&CK technique T1566, specifically targeting the initial access phase through phishing or manipulation tactics.
Administrators should immediately upgrade to the latest available version of the YANewsflash plugin to remediate this vulnerability, as no patches were available for versions prior to the fix. Organizations should implement additional security measures including regular plugin audits, monitoring for unauthorized administrative changes, and user education about suspicious links and requests. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation and authentication mechanisms in web applications, particularly in content management systems where plugins extend functionality while potentially introducing new attack vectors. Network monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual administrative activity patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts.