{"id":86579,"date":"2026-03-01T06:28:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T06:28:09","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","slug":"cve-2025-53485-unauthenticated-user-access-to-election-related-data-in-mediawiki-s-securepoll-extension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-53485-unauthenticated-user-access-to-election-related-data-in-mediawiki-s-securepoll-extension\/","title":{"rendered":"CVE-2025-53485: Unauthenticated User Access to Election-related Data in MediaWiki’s SecurePoll Extension<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"

Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n

The vulnerability, CVE-2025-53485, is a critical flaw that allows unauthenticated users to manipulate election-related translation text in MediaWiki’s SecurePoll extension. This could potentially lead to system compromise or data leakage, impacting the integrity of the election process in the MediaWiki platform.<\/p>\n

Vulnerability Summary<\/strong><\/p>\n

CVE ID: CVE-2025-53485
\nSeverity: High (7.5 CVSS)
\nAttack Vector: Network
\nPrivileges Required: None
\nUser Interaction: None
\nImpact: System compromise or data leakage<\/p>\n

Affected Products<\/strong><\/p>\n

Product | Affected Versions<\/p>\n

MediaWiki SecurePoll extension | 1.39.X before 1.39.13
\nMediaWiki SecurePoll extension | 1.42.X before 1.42.7
\nMediaWiki SecurePoll extension | 1.43.X before 1.43.2<\/p>\n

How the Exploit Works<\/strong><\/p>\n

The vulnerability emerges from the lack of validation in SetTranslationHandler.php. This flaw allows even unauthenticated users to change election-related translation text. This could potentially allow an attacker to manipulate election data or leak sensitive information.<\/p>\n

Conceptual Example Code<\/strong><\/p>\n

Below is a conceptual example of how the vulnerability might be exploited. This is a sample HTTP POST request that changes the translation text in the SecurePoll extension.<\/p>\n

POST \/wiki\/api.php?action=securepoll-translate&message=electionName&translation=NewTranslation HTTP\/1.1\nHost: target.example.com\nContent-Type: application\/x-www-form-urlencoded\n{ \"malicious_payload\": \"...\" }<\/code><\/pre>\n
In this example, the `electionName` is being changed to `NewTranslation` without requiring any authentication. This could potentially allow an attacker to manipulate election names or other related data, causing significant disruption and potential compromise.<\/p>\n
Mitigation<\/strong><\/p>\n
Users of the affected versions of MediaWiki’s SecurePoll extension should upgrade to the latest patched versions immediately. If upgrading is not an immediate option, use of a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can provide temporary mitigation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Overview The vulnerability, CVE-2025-53485, is a critical flaw that allows unauthenticated users to manipulate election-related translation text in MediaWiki’s SecurePoll extension. This could potentially lead to system compromise or data leakage, impacting the integrity of the election process in the MediaWiki platform. Vulnerability Summary CVE ID: CVE-2025-53485 Severity: High (7.5 CVSS) Attack Vector: Network Privileges […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"vendor":[],"product":[],"attack_vector":[],"asset_type":[],"severity":[],"exploit_status":[],"class_list":["post-86579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t