CVE-2025-10496 is a stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability classified under CWE-80, found in the Cookie Notice & Consent plugin for WordPress developed by christophrado. This vulnerability affects all plugin versions up to and including 1.6.5. The root cause is insufficient input sanitization and output escaping of the 'uuid' parameter, which is used to track cookie consent states. An unauthenticated attacker can craft malicious payloads embedded in the 'uuid' parameter that get stored persistently within the plugin's data. When any user accesses a page containing the injected payload, the malicious script executes in the context of the victim's browser. This can lead to theft of sensitive information such as cookies or session tokens, unauthorized actions performed on behalf of the user, or redirection to malicious sites. The vulnerability is remotely exploitable over the network without requiring any user interaction or authentication, increasing its risk profile. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.2, reflecting a high severity with network attack vector, low attack complexity, no privileges required, no user interaction, and a scope change due to impact on user data. Although no known exploits have been reported in the wild yet, the widespread use of WordPress and this plugin makes it a critical issue to address. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper input validation and output encoding in web applications, especially plugins that handle user-generated or external data. The lack of available patches at the time of reporting necessitates immediate mitigation steps by administrators.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to the confidentiality and integrity of web applications using the affected plugin. Attackers can exploit the flaw to execute arbitrary JavaScript in users' browsers, potentially stealing session cookies, login credentials, or other sensitive data. This can lead to account takeover, unauthorized access to internal resources, or further lateral attacks within the organization. The vulnerability does not directly affect availability but can undermine user trust and lead to reputational damage, especially for organizations handling personal data under GDPR. Given the plugin's role in cookie consent management, exploitation could also result in non-compliance with privacy regulations if malicious scripts circumvent consent mechanisms. Organizations with customer-facing WordPress sites, especially in sectors like e-commerce, finance, healthcare, and government, are at heightened risk. The ease of exploitation without authentication or user interaction means attackers can automate attacks at scale, increasing the threat surface. Additionally, the scope change in CVSS indicates that the vulnerability affects components beyond the initial plugin context, potentially impacting other integrated systems or user sessions.

1. Monitor for official patches or updates from the plugin vendor and apply them immediately once available. 2. If patches are not yet released, consider temporarily disabling the Cookie Notice & Consent plugin or replacing it with a secure alternative. 3. Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with rules specifically designed to detect and block XSS payloads targeting the 'uuid' parameter or similar inputs. 4. Enforce strict Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to restrict the execution of inline scripts and loading of untrusted resources, mitigating the impact of injected scripts. 5. Conduct thorough input validation and output encoding on all user-supplied data within custom code or other plugins to reduce XSS risks. 6. Regularly audit WordPress plugins and themes for vulnerabilities and maintain an updated inventory to prioritize patching. 7. Educate web administrators and developers about secure coding practices and the risks of stored XSS. 8. Monitor web server and application logs for suspicious requests targeting the 'uuid' parameter or unusual script injection attempts. 9. Consider implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) for administrative access to reduce the impact of potential session hijacking. 10. Backup website data regularly to enable quick recovery in case of compromise.