CVE-2025-13542 is a critical security vulnerability identified in the DesignThemes LMS plugin for WordPress, present in all versions up to and including 1.0.4. The root cause is improper privilege management (CWE-269) within the 'dtlms_register_user_front_end' function, which fails to validate or restrict the user roles that can be assigned during the front-end user registration process. This design flaw allows unauthenticated attackers to specify the 'administrator' role when registering a new user account, thereby escalating their privileges to full administrative access without any authentication or user interaction. The vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8, reflecting its critical nature with network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), no user interaction (UI:N), and impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H). Exploitation of this vulnerability would grant attackers complete control over the WordPress site, enabling them to manipulate content, install malicious plugins, exfiltrate sensitive data, or disrupt services. Although no known exploits have been reported in the wild yet, the simplicity and severity of the vulnerability make it a prime target for attackers. The plugin is widely used in educational and training environments, making it a significant risk for organizations relying on WordPress-based LMS solutions.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a severe risk to the security and integrity of their WordPress-based learning management systems. Successful exploitation would allow attackers to gain administrator privileges, leading to full site compromise. This includes unauthorized data access, modification or deletion of course materials, user data breaches, and potential deployment of malware or ransomware. The impact extends to reputational damage, regulatory non-compliance (e.g., GDPR violations due to data breaches), and operational disruptions. Educational institutions, corporate training departments, and e-learning service providers in Europe relying on DesignThemes LMS are particularly vulnerable. Given the critical nature of the vulnerability and the ease of exploitation without authentication, the threat landscape is highly concerning for European entities that have not yet applied mitigations or updates.

1. Immediately restrict or disable front-end user registrations in the DesignThemes LMS plugin until a patch is available. 2. Monitor for updates from the vendor and apply security patches as soon as they are released. 3. Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block registration attempts that specify elevated roles such as 'administrator'. 4. Conduct an audit of existing user accounts to identify any unauthorized administrator accounts created via this vulnerability and remove them. 5. Harden WordPress installations by limiting plugin permissions and using role management plugins that enforce strict role assignment policies. 6. Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all administrator accounts to reduce the impact of potential account compromise. 7. Regularly back up WordPress sites and databases to enable recovery in case of compromise. 8. Educate site administrators about this vulnerability and encourage vigilance for suspicious registration activity.