Missing AuthorizationWeakness · CWE-862

CVE-2025-11833

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-11-01
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
High EPSS Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 Post SMTP – Complete SMTP Solution with Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access of data due to a missing capability check on the __construct function in all versions up to, and including, 3.6.0. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to read arbitrary logged emails sent through the Post SMTP plugin, including password reset emails containing password reset links, which can lead to account takeover.

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 Post SMTP WordPress plugin has a broken access control vulnerability in its __construct function that lacks a capability check, allowing unauthenticated attackers to read arbitrary logged emails. This exposes sensitive data including password reset emails with functional reset links, enabling complete account takeover of affected users.

MitigationUpdate the Post SMTP plugin to version 3.6.1 or later to receive the patched version with proper capability/authorization checks on the __construct function.

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

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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 Post SMTP plugin installation and version
    In WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins and locate Post SMTP. Check the version number displayed under the plugin name. Alternatively, examine the plugin header in /wp-content/plugins/post-smtp/post-smtp.php or check the version in the plugin's main PHP file.
    Affected if The plugin is installed with a version number lower than 3.6.1
  2. Determine if email logging is enabled
    Navigate to Post SMTP > Email Log in the WordPress admin dashboard. Check if email logging is turned on or if any logged emails are present in the database.
    Affected if Email logging is enabled and logged emails exist in the system
  3. Verify plugin file access control
    Examine the main plugin file (post-smtp.php or class-post-smtp.php) and locate the __construct function. Check if it contains a capability check (such as current_user_can or similar authorization) before executing sensitive operations.
    Affected if The __construct function lacks a capability check, allowing unauthenticated access to logged email data
  4. Check for exposed email log endpoints
    Inspect the plugin's AJAX handlers and public-facing PHP functions. Look for endpoints that handle email log retrieval without requiring authentication.
    Affected if Unauthenticated endpoints exist that can be queried to retrieve logged email contents

You are affected if Post SMTP plugin is installed with a version before 3.6.1 and email logging is enabled, as unauthenticated attackers can read all logged emails including password reset links.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update the Post SMTP plugin to version 3.6.1 or later to receive the patched version with proper capability/authorization checks on the __construct function.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Latest version after 3.6.0 (check WordPress plugin repository for 3.6.1 or later)

  1. 1. Update the Post SMTP plugin to the latest available version through the WordPress admin dashboard under Plugins > Installed Plugins > Post SMTP > Update Now
  2. 2. After updating, verify that the plugin is functioning correctly by sending a test email through the plugin settings
  3. 3. Review any logged emails that may have been exposed and consider notifying affected users if sensitive information was logged

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-11833 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

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-2025-11833 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