Deserialization of Untrusted DataWeakness · CWE-502

CVE-2025-26763

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-02-22
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
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
Deserialization of Untrusted Data vulnerability in MetaSlider Responsive Slider by MetaSlider ml-slider allows Object Injection.This issue affects Responsive Slider by MetaSlider: from n/a through <= 3.94.0.

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 MetaSlider WordPress plugin (ml-slider) versions through 3.94.0 contain a PHP Object Injection vulnerability via unsafe deserialization of untrusted data. An unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit this by sending crafted serialized PHP objects to the plugin, potentially achieving arbitrary code execution if a suitable POP chain exists within the application or installed plugins.

MitigationUpdate MetaSlider to the latest patched version immediately. If patching is not feasible, disable the plugin until an update is available, as the CVSS 9.8 score indicates critical exploitable conditions.

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. Confirm MetaSlider plugin is installed
    Navigate to WordPress admin > Plugins and check if 'MetaSlider' (ml-slider) appears in the installed plugins list
    Affected if MetaSlider plugin is present in the WordPress installation
  2. Identify installed MetaSlider version
    In WordPress admin > Plugins, locate MetaSlider and read the version number displayed beneath the plugin name, or check the version in the plugin header file (ml-slider/ml-slider.php) via file manager or FTP
    Affected if The installed version is 3.94.0 or lower (any version through 3.94.0 is affected)
  3. Verify the vulnerable deserialization endpoint is accessible
    Check plugin settings or network traffic to identify if the plugin processes serialized data via AJAX actions or front-end endpoints. Review plugin PHP files for calls to unserialize() on user-supplied input, particularly in files like inc/metaslider.class.php or similar handler files
    Affected if The plugin processes untrusted serialized PHP data without validation (unserialize() is called on input from HTTP requests)
  4. Audit for suspicious PHP object injection artifacts
    Review WordPress access logs for unusual POST requests to /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php or plugin endpoints containing serialized PHP patterns (like O: or a:). Check for unexpected new files in wp-content/uploads or plugin directories that may indicate exploitation attempts
    Affected if Logs show serialized PHP payloads being sent to the site, or unexpected PHP files appear after the vulnerability disclosure date

A user is affected if MetaSlider (ml-slider) version 3.94.0 or lower is installed AND the plugin processes untrusted serialized PHP data, as an unauthenticated attacker can inject arbitrary PHP objects to achieve code execution.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update MetaSlider to the latest patched version immediately. If patching is not feasible, disable the plugin until an update is available, as the CVSS 9.8 score indicates critical exploitable conditions.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,780
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2025-26763 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