dbcve.org
PuzzlesWordPress extension · Themerex

CVE-2025-0837

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-02-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 4.2.6 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
The Puzzles theme for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via shortcodes in versions up to, and including, 4.2.6 due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping on user supplied attributes. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with contributor-level and above permissions to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user accesses an injected page.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

The Puzzles WordPress theme fails to properly sanitize and escape user-supplied attributes in shortcodes, allowing authenticated users with contributor-level or higher permissions to inject malicious JavaScript. This stored XSS persists in pages and executes whenever any user accesses the affected page.

MitigationUpdate the Puzzles theme to version 4.2.7 or later which contains the fix. Until updated, review and sanitize all shortcode implementations to ensure all user inputs are properly escaped using functions like esc_attr() before output.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
PuzzlesWordPress extension
Affected:<= 4.2.6

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the installed Puzzles theme version
    Check the style.css file in wp-content/themes/puzzles/ or view the theme details in WordPress admin under Appearance > Themes
    Affected if The theme version is 4.2.6 or lower
  2. Confirm shortcode functionality is in use
    Search WordPress database posts table for shortcode tags (like [puzzles_...]) in post_content, or inspect page content via WordPress admin
    Affected if Pages or posts contain Puzzles shortcodes that accept user-supplied attributes
  3. Verify contributor-level or higher users exist
    Check WordPress users list in admin under Users > All Users for any user with Contributor, Author, Editor, or Administrator role
    Affected if At least one user with contributor-level or higher permissions exists in the system
  4. Inspect shortcode attributes in database for unsanitized input
    Query wp_posts table for post_content containing shortcodes with attribute values that may contain script tags or unescaped characters (e.g., SELECT ID, post_title FROM wp_posts WHERE post_content LIKE '%[puzzles_%=%"%<%'); manually review any found shortcodes for injected JavaScript
    Affected if Shortcode attributes in stored content contain unescaped quotes, <script> tags, or event handlers like onmouseover/onerror

You are affected if the Puzzles theme version is 4.2.6 or lower AND shortcodes accepting user input are in use with contributor+ user accounts present in the environment.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 4.2.6
Interim mitigation

Update the Puzzles theme to version 4.2.7 or later which contains the fix. Until updated, review and sanitize all shortcode implementations to ensure all user inputs are properly escaped using functions like esc_attr() before output.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Version 4.2.7 or later

  1. Backup your WordPress site and database before making any changes
  2. Navigate to Appearance > Themes in the WordPress admin dashboard
  3. Locate the Puzzles theme and check for available updates
  4. If an update to version 4.2.7 or higher is available, apply the update
  5. After updating, verify the fix by testing shortcode functionality with various attribute inputs
  6. Clear any caching plugins or server-side caches
  7. Review pages using the theme's shortcodes to ensure no malicious scripts were previously injected
Caveat Theme updates may affect custom styling or child theme configurations; test in staging environment before production deployment

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Puzzles Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-0837 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data