External risk intelligence

EduKart Pro WordPress Plugin Privilege Escalation

CVE advisorySeverity: CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8)

CVE-2025-13559

This vulnerability exists in a WordPress plugin designed for front-end user registration. Since WordPress registration pages are typically accessible to the public on internet-facing websites to allow new user sign-ups, this attack surface is commonly exposed to the internet in standard deployments of this product.

Privilege Escalation

Halo Surface Signal: 4 out of 5 — likely to be public-facing.

External exposure likelihood

Horizon Alert

Summary of the vulnerability and why it matters

This advisory concerns a critical vulnerability in the EduKart Pro WordPress plugin that could allow any visitor to register as an administrator, bypassing security controls. The primary concern is to confirm if this plugin is in use and if so, to assess its specific configuration and potential exposure.

Unauthenticated users can gain site administrator access.
Confirms if the plugin is in use and exposed.
Assess relevance and exposure to determine risk.

Attack Path

How an attacker could exploit the issue

Attackers can leverage a flaw in the EduKart Pro WordPress plugin to gain administrator privileges. This occurs because the plugin's user registration function fails to properly validate the roles assigned to new users, allowing unauthenticated individuals to register themselves as administrators directly through the website's front end. This leads to a complete compromise of the website.

Unauthenticated public access.
Registering with an administrator role.
Full site administration compromise.

Live Threat

Current exploitation, exposure, and threat context

Unauthenticated attackers could gain administrator access to a WordPress site using the EduKart Pro plugin by exploiting a flaw in the user registration function. This could allow them to assign themselves the administrator role during the registration process.

Website administrator access.
Unauthenticated registration manipulation.
Full site compromise and data control.

Operational Fix

Recommended remediation, mitigation, and detection steps

In a typical WordPress deployment, the application owner or the system administrator responsible for managing the website and its plugins would be the primary owner of this issue. The first practical step is to identify all instances of the EduKart Pro plugin, determine their exposure (internal vs. external), and assess their criticality to business operations. This will inform the prioritization and planning of remediation efforts.

Application owners should lead remediation.
Verify plugin presence and exposure.
Plan coordinated updates or mitigation.

Supplementary metadata

CVSS vector

Validate whether this threat affects your internet-facing exposure.

Halo Threat Intelligence helps prioritize remediation with Halo Surface Signal and H/A/L/O context. Start exposure validation with a free external attack surface trial.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the EduKart Pro plugin for WordPress?

EduKart Pro is a specialized plugin designed for WordPress to manage online learning and education platforms. It provides functionality for building educational portals, often incorporating features like front-end user registration so students or instructors can sign up and access course materials directly through the website's interface.

What does CWE-269 mean for CVE-2025-13559?

CWE-269 refers to Improper Privilege Management. In the context of this CVE, it means the plugin's code fails to properly check or restrict the security permissions assigned to new users. Because this validation is missing, the system mistakenly trusts the input provided during registration, allowing a user to grant themselves higher-level privileges than they should have.

How can an attacker trigger this vulnerability?

An attacker exploits this by interacting with the registration function provided by the plugin. During the sign-up process, they intentionally submit a request that includes the 'administrator' role. Because the plugin does not verify this role assignment, it accepts the input and upgrades the attacker's account immediately. Simply visiting the site or viewing a page does not trigger this; the attacker must actively submit a registration request.

Is my site at risk if I use EduKart Pro?

If your site uses this plugin, it is at higher risk because WordPress registration pages are generally designed to be reachable by the public. According to Halo Surface Signal, because this plugin specifically enables public-facing front-end registration, these sites are typically exposed to the internet, making it easy for unauthenticated actors to attempt this registration exploit.

What should I do if I have this plugin installed?

First, verify if you are running the affected versions 1.0.3 or earlier. Once you have confirmed its presence, evaluate your site's exposure to determine how critical this is for your business. Coordinate with your team to plan the necessary updates or mitigation strategies to disable the vulnerable registration functionality until a secure version is implemented.

References

Written by Nicholas Merritt

Nicholas Merritt is VP of Security Solutions at Halo Security. With more than 25 years across application security, vulnerability prioritization, and offensive security, he helps teams translate threat data into practical exposure validation and remediation focus. He authors Halo Threat Intelligence CVE advisories using Halo Surface Signal and H/A/L/O context to prioritize internet-facing risk.