dbcve.org
Information ExposureWeakness · CWE-200

CVE-2025-13215

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-01-06
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 Shortcodes and extra features for Phlox theme plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Information Exposure in all versions up to, and including, 2.17.13 via the auxels_ajax_search due to insufficient restrictions on which posts can be included. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to extract titles of draft posts that they should not have access to.

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 auxels_ajax_search AJAX endpoint in the Phlox theme plugin for WordPress lacks proper access controls, allowing unauthenticated attackers to query and retrieve titles of draft or non-public posts that should be restricted.

MitigationUpdate the Shortcodes and extra features for Phlox plugin to version 2.17.14 or later, which includes proper access controls on the auxels_ajax_search function to prevent unauthorized access to draft post titles.

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
Low
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/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. Confirm Phlox plugin installation
    Check WordPress plugins directory for 'auxels' or 'phlox' plugin files, or look in wp-content/plugins for folders containing 'auxels' or 'phlox'
    Affected if The Phlox theme plugin or Shortcodes and extra features for Phlox is installed
  2. Identify installed version
    Check the plugin main file (e.g., index.php or main plugin file) for the 'Version' header, or query the WordPress database: SELECT option_value FROM wp_options WHERE option_name LIKE '%version%' AND option_value LIKE '%phlox%'
    Affected if Version is lower than 2.17.14 or the version cannot be determined
  3. Check if auxels_ajax_search endpoint is accessible
    Send a GET or POST request to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php?action=auxels_ajax_search with a search parameter (e.g., ?action=auxels_ajax_search&term=test) and observe if the server responds without authentication
    Affected if The endpoint returns HTTP 200 and contains post titles without requiring login credentials
  4. Verify draft/non-public posts exist
    Query WordPress database: SELECT ID, post_title, post_status FROM wp_posts WHERE post_status IN ('draft','private','pending') AND post_type='post' LIMIT 10
    Affected if Draft, private, or pending posts exist in the database that could be exposed through the AJAX endpoint

If the Phlox plugin is installed with a version lower than 2.17.14 and the auxels_ajax_search AJAX endpoint responds without authentication, the environment is affected by this vulnerability.

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 Shortcodes and extra features for Phlox plugin to version 2.17.14 or later, which includes proper access controls on the auxels_ajax_search function to prevent unauthorized access to draft post titles.

Recommended fix High confidence

Version 2.17.14 or later of the Shortcodes and extra features for Phlox plugin

  1. 1. Log in to the WordPress admin dashboard
  2. 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
  3. 3. Locate the 'Shortcodes and extra features for Phlox' (also known as Phlox Auxiliaries) plugin
  4. 4. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to upgrade to the latest version
  5. 5. Alternatively, manually download the updated plugin from the WordPress plugin repository and upload it via Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin
  6. 6. After updating, verify the plugin is running version 2.17.14 or higher

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-13215 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2025-13215 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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