CVE-2025-14539
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 · uneditedThe The Shortcode Ajax plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary shortcode execution in all versions up to, and including, 1.0. This is due to the software allowing users to execute an action that does not properly validate a value before running do_shortcode. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary shortcodes.
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 confidenceThe Shortcode Ajax WordPress plugin (versions up to 1.0) fails to validate input before passing it to do_shortcode(), allowing unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary shortcodes via the plugin's AJAX endpoint.
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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm plugin installation and versionCheck the WordPress plugins directory (wp-content/plugins/) for a folder named 'shortcode-ajax' or similar. Also check Plugins > Installed Plugins in WordPress admin for 'Shortcode Ajax' and note the version number displayed.Affected if The plugin is installed and the version is 1.0 or lower (or if no version is shown, meaning it may be an unversioned release of 1.0)
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Locate the plugin AJAX endpointExamine the plugin PHP files for 'add_action' calls registering AJAX handlers. Look for 'wp_ajax_nopriv_' prefixed actions which indicate unauthenticated access is allowed. Common patterns: add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_shortcode_ajax_action', 'handler_function') or similar.Affected if An AJAX action handler registered with 'wp_ajax_nopriv_' prefix exists, meaning the endpoint is accessible to unauthenticated users
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Identify the vulnerable shortcode parameter handlingFind the AJAX handler function in the plugin code. Search for 'do_shortcode' calls. Look for $_POST or $_REQUEST usage of a 'shortcode' or similar parameter passed directly to do_shortcode() without validation. Example pattern: do_shortcode($_POST['shortcode']).Affected if The code passes a user-supplied parameter (from $_POST/$_REQUEST) directly to do_shortcode() without sanitization or validation checks
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Check for input validation before do_shortcodeReview the AJAX handler code for any sanitization functions (like sanitize_text_field, esc_attr, or whitelist array checks) applied to the shortcode parameter before the do_shortcode() call. Also check if a whitelist of allowed shortcodes is implemented.Affected if No sanitization function or whitelist validation is applied to the shortcode parameter before it reaches do_shortcode()
If the Shortcode Ajax plugin (version 1.0 or below) is installed with an unauthenticated AJAX endpoint that passes unsanitized input to do_shortcode(), the environment is affected by this CVE.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataUpdate the plugin to a patched version once available, or implement input validation/sanitization on the shortcode parameter before do_shortcode() is called, ideally using a whitelist approach for allowed shortcodes.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-14539 — 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 sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-14539 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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
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