CVE-2025-11740 is a SQL Injection vulnerability identified in the wpForo Forum plugin for WordPress, specifically affecting all versions up to and including 2.4.9. The vulnerability arises from improper neutralization of special elements in SQL commands (CWE-89) within the Subscriptions Manager component. The root cause is insufficient escaping of user-supplied parameters and lack of prepared statements in the SQL queries, which allows an authenticated attacker with Subscriber-level or higher privileges to append arbitrary SQL code to existing queries. This can be exploited remotely without user interaction, as long as the attacker has valid credentials. The impact is primarily on confidentiality, enabling extraction of sensitive information from the database such as user data, forum content, or configuration details. The vulnerability does not allow modification or deletion of data (integrity) nor does it affect service availability. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 6.5 (medium), reflecting network attack vector, low attack complexity, required privileges, no user interaction, and high confidentiality impact. No known exploits are currently in the wild, and no official patches have been published as of the vulnerability disclosure date (November 1, 2025). The vulnerability is significant because wpForo is a popular forum plugin used by many WordPress sites, and forums often contain sensitive user-generated content and personal information. Attackers exploiting this flaw could harvest data for further attacks or privacy violations.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-11740 can be substantial, especially for those relying on WordPress-based community forums or support portals using the wpForo plugin. The unauthorized disclosure of sensitive data could lead to privacy breaches, regulatory non-compliance (e.g., GDPR violations), reputational damage, and potential legal consequences. Since the vulnerability requires only Subscriber-level access, it lowers the barrier for exploitation compared to vulnerabilities requiring administrative privileges. Attackers could leverage stolen data for phishing, social engineering, or lateral movement within the organization. The confidentiality breach may include personally identifiable information (PII), internal discussions, or proprietary information stored in forum databases. Although the vulnerability does not affect data integrity or availability, the loss of confidentiality alone is critical in sectors such as finance, healthcare, and government agencies prevalent in Europe. Additionally, the lack of a patch increases the risk window, necessitating immediate mitigations. Organizations with public-facing forums are particularly exposed to external attackers who can register accounts to gain Subscriber access and exploit the flaw.

1. Immediately restrict user roles and permissions on wpForo forums to the minimum necessary, especially limiting Subscriber-level access where possible. 2. Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block suspicious SQL injection patterns targeting the Subscriptions Manager endpoints. 3. Monitor database query logs for unusual or unexpected SQL commands that could indicate exploitation attempts. 4. Apply custom input validation and sanitization on user inputs related to subscriptions until an official patch is released. 5. Consider temporarily disabling the Subscriptions Manager feature if feasible to reduce attack surface. 6. Keep WordPress core and all plugins updated; monitor vendor announcements for patches addressing this vulnerability. 7. Conduct regular security audits and penetration tests focusing on forum components. 8. Educate forum administrators and users about the risk and signs of compromise. 9. Employ network segmentation to isolate forum databases from critical internal systems. 10. Prepare incident response plans to quickly address any detected exploitation.