The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-12639 affects the wModes – Catalog Mode, Product Pricing, Enquiry Forms & Promotions plugin for WooCommerce, a popular e-commerce extension for WordPress. The root cause is a missing authorization check (CWE-862) on an AJAX endpoint that handles requests for sensitive data. This flaw allows any authenticated user with at least subscriber-level privileges to bypass intended access controls and retrieve sensitive information, including user emails, usernames, roles, capabilities, and WooCommerce-specific data such as product details and payment methods. The vulnerability affects all plugin versions up to 1.2.2 and does not require user interaction, making exploitation straightforward once authenticated. The CVSS v3.1 score of 4.3 reflects a medium severity, driven by the vulnerability’s impact on confidentiality but no impact on integrity or availability. The attack vector is network-based, with low attack complexity and requiring low privileges but no user interaction. Although no exploits have been reported in the wild, the exposure of sensitive user and commerce data could facilitate further attacks such as phishing, fraud, or privilege escalation. The vulnerability is particularly concerning for organizations relying on WooCommerce for online sales, as leaked payment method data and user roles could undermine trust and compliance with data protection regulations. The absence of a patch at the time of reporting necessitates interim mitigations to restrict access and monitor suspicious activity on the affected AJAX endpoints.

For European organizations, the primary impact is the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive personal and commercial data. This includes user emails and roles, which can be leveraged for targeted phishing campaigns or social engineering attacks. Exposure of WooCommerce product and payment method data risks financial fraud and undermines customer trust. Additionally, the leakage of user roles and capabilities could aid attackers in privilege escalation attempts within the WordPress environment. Given the stringent data protection requirements under GDPR, such data breaches could lead to regulatory penalties and reputational damage. E-commerce businesses in Europe relying on this plugin may face operational disruptions and customer attrition if the vulnerability is exploited. The medium severity rating indicates a moderate but tangible risk, especially for organizations with subscriber-level user registrations or multiple user roles. The lack of known exploits reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, as attackers may develop exploits once the vulnerability is public knowledge.

Until an official patch is released, European organizations should implement the following mitigations: 1) Restrict access to the affected AJAX endpoints by configuring web application firewalls (WAFs) or server rules to limit requests to trusted IPs or authenticated users with higher privileges only. 2) Audit and minimize the number of subscriber-level or low-privilege accounts to reduce the attack surface. 3) Monitor logs for unusual AJAX requests or data access patterns indicative of exploitation attempts. 4) Consider temporarily disabling the wModes plugin if feasible, or replacing it with alternative plugins that do not exhibit this vulnerability. 5) Enforce strong authentication and session management policies to prevent unauthorized account creation or compromise. 6) Prepare for rapid deployment of patches once available by maintaining an up-to-date inventory of affected systems. 7) Educate staff about phishing risks that may arise from leaked user data. These targeted actions go beyond generic advice by focusing on access control, monitoring, and user management specific to this vulnerability’s exploitation vector.