dbcve.org
Code InjectionWeakness · CWE-94

CVE-2025-9489

MEDIUM · 5.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-09
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
56/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
The The WP-Members Membership Plugin plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary shortcode execution in all versions up to, and including, 3.5.4.2. 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 authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level access and above, 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 confidence

The WP-Members Membership Plugin for WordPress fails to validate user input before passing it to the do_shortcode() function, allowing authenticated users with Subscriber-level access to execute arbitrary shortcodes. This enables privilege escalation beyond the Subscriber role's normal capabilities.

MitigationUpdate to a patched version of the plugin once available, or implement proper input validation/sanitization on any value passed to do_shortcode() in the plugin's code.

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
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

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-Members plugin is installed
    In WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins and look for 'WP-Members Membership Plugin' in the list. Note whether it is activated or not.
    Affected if The plugin is installed and active in WordPress
  2. Identify the installed plugin version
    In the Plugins list, click on the plugin name or view the plugin files to locate the version number in the plugin header (typically in the main PHP file or readme.txt). Compare this to any patched version available from the vendor.
    Affected if The installed version is older than the patched version (no patched version is specified, so any version should be treated as potentially affected)
  3. Verify authenticated subscriber access exists
    In WordPress admin, go to Users > Users and check if any users have the 'Subscriber' role assigned. Also check Users > User Roles to confirm the Subscriber role exists.
    Affected if Subscriber-level user accounts exist in the WordPress installation
  4. Identify if user input reaches do_shortcode
    Examine the WP-Members plugin code for any instance where user-supplied input (such as POST/GET parameters, user profile fields, or plugin settings) is passed directly to the do_shortcode() function without sanitization. Search the plugin files for 'do_shortcode' calls and trace whether any user input flows into that function.
    Affected if User-controlled input is passed to do_shortcode() without validation or sanitization in the plugin code

A user is affected if the WP-Members plugin is active, contains vulnerable code where user input flows to do_shortcode(), and subscriber-level users exist in the WordPress installation.

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

Update to a patched version of the plugin once available, or implement proper input validation/sanitization on any value passed to do_shortcode() in the plugin's code.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

3.5.5 or later

  1. Backup your WordPress site database and files before making any changes
  2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins in the WordPress admin dashboard
  3. Find the WP-Members plugin and click 'Update now' to install the latest version
  4. Alternatively, download the latest version from the WordPress plugin repository and upload it manually via Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin
  5. After updating, verify the plugin version is 3.5.5 or higher
  6. Test that authenticated users with Subscriber-level access can no longer execute arbitrary shortcodes
  7. Clear any caching mechanisms if implemented

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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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-2025-9489 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
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