Overview
The cybersecurity landscape is fraught with potential threats and vulnerabilities, and one such critical flaw has been identified in the Frontend Dashboard plugin for WordPress. Affecting versions 1.0 to 2.2.6, this vulnerability allows unauthenticated attackers to reset the administrator’s email and password, effectively granting them administrative privileges on the platform. Given the ubiquity of WordPress and its extensive use in content management across various industries, this vulnerability holds potential for significant impact and thus requires immediate attention.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-4104
Severity: Critical (CVSS Severity Score: 9.8)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: System compromise and potential data leakage
Affected Products
No phone number, email, or personal info required.
Product | Affected Versions
Frontend Dashboard WordPress Plugin | 1.0 to 2.2.6
How the Exploit Works
The vulnerability lies in a missing capability check on the `fed_wp_ajax_fed_login_form_post()` function within the Frontend Dashboard plugin. This omission allows a nefarious actor to make a direct call to this function, bypassing the usual authentication process. Once this function is invoked, the attacker can then reset the administrator’s email and password. This effectively grants the attacker administrative privileges, providing full control over the WordPress site.
Conceptual Example Code
The following is a conceptual example of how the vulnerability might be exploited.
POST /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php?action=fed_user_login_form_post HTTP/1.1
Host: target.example.com
Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded
user_login=admin&user_pass=attacker_password&user_email=attacker@example.comIn this example, the attacker sends a POST request to the vulnerable endpoint (`admin-ajax.php`) with the `action` parameter set to `fed_user_login_form_post`. The attacker includes the new desired username (`admin`), password (`attacker_password`), and email (`attacker@example.com`) in the request body.
Mitigation Guidance
The ideal solution to this critical vulnerability is to apply the vendor patch as soon as it is available. In the meantime, or if the patch cannot be immediately applied, the use of a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can provide temporary mitigation. These tools can be configured to detect and block requests targeting the vulnerable endpoint. However, these are only temporary measures and may not fully protect the system against all potential exploits of this vulnerability. Therefore, updating the plugin to a patched version should be a priority.
