The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-12526 affects the Private Google Calendars plugin for WordPress, developed by michielve. It is classified under CWE-862, indicating a missing authorization check. Specifically, the plugin fails to verify user capabilities when processing the 'pgc_remove' action, which is responsible for resetting the plugin's settings. This flaw exists in all versions up to and including 20250811. An attacker with authenticated access at the Subscriber level or higher can exploit this vulnerability to reset the plugin’s configuration without proper authorization. The attack vector is network-based (remote), requires low attack complexity, and does not require user interaction. The vulnerability impacts the integrity of the plugin’s settings but does not affect confidentiality or availability. The CVSS v3.1 score is 4.3 (medium severity), reflecting the limited scope and impact. No public exploits or patches are currently available, but the vulnerability is publicly disclosed and assigned a CVE ID. The issue arises because WordPress roles such as Subscriber typically have minimal privileges, yet the plugin does not enforce capability checks adequately, allowing privilege escalation within the plugin context. This could lead to disruption of calendar functionality or unauthorized changes to calendar display and integration settings, potentially affecting business operations relying on calendar data.

For European organizations, the primary impact is on the integrity of calendar data and plugin configurations within WordPress environments. Unauthorized resetting of plugin settings could disrupt scheduling, event management, and integrations with Google Calendar, leading to operational inefficiencies or confusion. Although the vulnerability does not expose sensitive data or cause denial of service, the ability for low-privileged users to alter plugin settings could be exploited in insider threat scenarios or by compromised accounts. Organizations relying heavily on WordPress for internal or customer-facing portals that integrate Google Calendars may experience workflow interruptions. The risk is heightened in environments where many users have Subscriber or higher roles, common in collaborative or content-rich sites. Additionally, if attackers combine this vulnerability with other weaknesses, they might further escalate privileges or pivot to more damaging attacks. The absence of known exploits reduces immediate risk, but the public disclosure means attackers could develop exploits, increasing urgency for mitigation.

1. Immediately audit user roles and permissions in WordPress to ensure that only trusted users have Subscriber-level or higher access, minimizing the attack surface. 2. Restrict the number of users with elevated roles and enforce the principle of least privilege. 3. Monitor plugin settings and logs for unexpected changes to the Private Google Calendars plugin configuration. 4. Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block unauthorized attempts to invoke the 'pgc_remove' action. 5. Regularly update WordPress core and plugins; apply patches from the plugin vendor as soon as they are released. 6. Consider temporarily disabling or replacing the Private Google Calendars plugin if critical until a patch is available. 7. Educate administrators and users about the risks of unauthorized access and encourage strong authentication practices to reduce the risk of account compromise. 8. Use security plugins that can enforce capability checks or restrict plugin management actions to administrators only.