CVE-2025-53499
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 · uneditedMissing Authorization vulnerability in Wikimedia Foundation Mediawiki - AbuseFilter Extension allows Unauthorized Access.This issue affects Mediawiki - AbuseFilter Extension: from 1.43.X before 1.43.2.
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 confidenceMissing authorization vulnerability in MediaWiki's AbuseFilter extension allows unauthenticated attackers to bypass access controls. The AbuseFilter extension, which manages rules for detecting and preventing abuse/vandalism, lacks proper authorization checks in certain operations.
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
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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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Check MediaWiki versionInspect the version file in your MediaWiki installation. Open includes/Defines.php and look for the MW_VERSION constant, or check LocalSettings.php for the $wgVersion variable. Alternatively, query the API endpoint api.php?action=query&meta=siteinfo&siprop=general and look for the 'version' field.Affected if The installed version is 1.43.0, 1.43.1, or any 1.43.x version prior to 1.43.2
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Verify AbuseFilter extension is enabledCheck your LocalSettings.php file for the AbuseFilter extension loading statement. Look for lines containing 'wfLoadExtension' or 'require_once' that reference 'AbuseFilter'. The extension is typically loaded with: wfLoadExtension( 'AbuseFilter' );Affected if The AbuseFilter extension is enabled and loaded in LocalSettings.php
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Confirm extension version if availableIf your installation includes an extension.json file in the AbuseFilter directory, examine it for the 'version' field. This may indicate the specific patch level of the AbuseFilter extension.Affected if The AbuseFilter extension version is 1.43.0 or 1.43.1 (prior to the 1.43.2 authorization fix)
Your environment is affected if MediaWiki version is 1.43.x before 1.43.2 AND the AbuseFilter extension is enabled in your configuration.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpgrade MediaWiki AbuseFilter extension to version 1.43.2 or later to obtain the patch. Verify that filter rules and permissions are functioning correctly after the upgrade.
MediaWiki 1.43.2 or later (with AbuseFilter extension 1.43.2 or later)
- 1. Identify current MediaWiki version and confirm the AbuseFilter extension is installed by checking Special:Version
- 2. Review MediaWiki upgrade documentation for your installation method (tarball, git, or package manager)
- 3. Upgrade MediaWiki core and all extensions to version 1.43.2 or later
- 4. Clear any caches (e.g., objectcache, parsercache) as required by MediaWiki upgrades
- 5. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking Special:Version shows version 1.43.2 or later
- 6. Test AbuseFilter functionality (e.g., create/modify a filter, trigger a filter) to confirm the extension works correctly
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,416.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-53499 — 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-2025-53499 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data