CVE-2025-5563
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 WP-Addpub plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to SQL Injection via the 'wp-addpub' shortcode in all versions up to, and including, 1.2.8 due to insufficient escaping on the user supplied parameter and lack of sufficient preparation on the existing SQL query. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Contributor-level access and above, to append additional SQL queries into already existing queries that can be used to extract sensitive information from the database.
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 WP-Addpub WordPress plugin suffers from a SQL Injection vulnerability in its 'wp-addpub' shortcode (versions up to 1.2.8). The vulnerability stems from two combined issues: insufficient escaping of user-supplied parameters and lack of prepared statements in the SQL query. An attacker with Contributor-level access or higher can inject malicious SQL queries to extract sensitive database information.
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
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify WP-Addpub plugin is installedAccess WordPress admin > Plugins and look for WP-Addpub in the list of installed plugins, or use WP-CLI: wp plugin list --search='*addpub*'Affected if WP-Addpub appears in the installed plugins list
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Determine installed plugin versionView the plugin details page in WordPress admin (click on the plugin name) to see the version number, or inspect the main plugin file header in wp-content/plugins/wp-addpub/ for the 'Version' commentAffected if Version displayed is 1.2.8 or lower (any version up to and including 1.2.8)
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Identify if the vulnerable shortcode is in useSearch your WordPress database or content for the shortcode [wp-addpub] appearing in posts, pages, or widgets. In WP-CLI: wp post list --s='[wp-addpub]' --format=idsAffected if The shortcode [wp-addpub] is present in any published content
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Assess user access levelsReview user accounts with Contributor, Author, Editor, or Administrator roles in WordPress admin > Users. These roles can execute the shortcode.Affected if Any user account with Contributor-level access or higher exists on the site
Your environment is affected if WP-Addpub plugin is installed with version 1.2.8 or lower AND the wp-addpub shortcode is present in any content AND at least one user with Contributor-level access or higher exists.
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 · scopedUpdate the WP-Addpub plugin to the latest version immediately. If no patched version is available, disable and remove the plugin until a fix is released. Alternatively, remove the shortcode functionality from the codebase as a temporary workaround.
Version 1.2.9 or later (check WordPress Plugin Repository for latest stable release)
- Check the current version of the WP-Addpub plugin installed on your WordPress site
- Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins in the WordPress admin dashboard
- Locate WP-Addpub and note the current version number
- Visit the WordPress Plugin Repository at https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-addpub/ to verify if a version newer than 1.2.8 is available
- If version 1.2.9 or higher is available, update the plugin via Plugins > Add New > Upload or directly from the Plugins page
- After updating, verify the fix was applied by confirming the plugin version has changed
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,616.
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-5563 — 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-2025-5563 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