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Deserialization of Untrusted DataWeakness · CWE-502

CVE-2025-52737

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-10-22
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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 Tijmen Smit WP Store Locator wp-store-locator allows Object Injection.This issue affects WP Store Locator: from n/a through <= 2.2.260.

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 · moderate confidence

The WP Store Locator plugin for WordPress contains a deserialization vulnerability where untrusted data is passed to PHP's unserialize() function, allowing an attacker to inject arbitrary PHP objects. This could lead to remote code execution if certain magic methods are present in the application or connected libraries.

MitigationUpgrade to a patched version of WP Store Locator. If no patch is available, audit the codebase for unsafe unserialize() calls and replace with safe serialization methods like JSON encoding, or implement strict allowlist validation for any deserialized data.

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 WP Store Locator is installed
    Navigate to WordPress admin > Plugins and verify WP Store Locator appears in the installed plugins list, or inspect the wp-content/plugins directory for a folder containing 'store-locator' in the name
    Affected if The plugin is present in the WordPress installation
  2. Locate the installed version number
    In WordPress admin, view the plugin details to see the version number, or open the plugin's main PHP file (usually named similarly to the plugin folder) and check the plugin header comment for 'Version: x.x.x'
    Affected if The version number cannot be determined or falls within an affected range compared to patched releases
  3. Identify vulnerable unserialize() calls
    Search the plugin directory (wp-content/plugins/store-locator*) for PHP files containing 'unserialize' - specifically look for instances where $_GET, $_POST, $_REQUEST, or similar user-supplied input is passed directly to unserialize()
    Affected if Any file in the plugin contains an unserialize() call operating on untrusted input without prior validation
  4. Check for accessible attack surface
    Review the plugin's AJAX handlers (usually in admin-ajax.php or separate AJAX files) and public-facing PHP files to determine if the vulnerable unserialize() code path can be reached without authentication
    Affected if The vulnerable code is reachable via an AJAX endpoint or other publicly accessible URL without requiring elevated privileges

A user is affected if WP Store Locator is installed, contains an unserialize() call operating on untrusted input, and that code path is accessible to attackers.

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

Upgrade to a patched version of WP Store Locator. If no patch is available, audit the codebase for unsafe unserialize() calls and replace with safe serialization methods like JSON encoding, or implement strict allowlist validation for any deserialized data.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Version newer than 2.2.260 (check WordPress plugin repository for latest release)

  1. Check your current WP Store Locator plugin version in WordPress admin under Plugins > Installed Plugins
  2. Navigate to Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin or update directly through the WordPress admin if an update is available
  3. If no update appears in WordPress, download the latest version of WP Store Locator from the official WordPress plugin repository
  4. Backup your database and files before updating
  5. Deactivate and delete the current WP Store Locator plugin, then upload and activate the new version
  6. Verify the plugin is running and test store locator functionality
Caveat Review changelog for any breaking changes between your current version and the upgrade version

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
19.0 hours of engineering $3,380
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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-2025-52737 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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