CVE-2025-14371 is a missing authorization vulnerability (CWE-862) in the WordPress plugin TaxoPress: Tag, Category, and Taxonomy Manager – AI Autotagger, developed by stevejburge. The vulnerability exists because the function taxopress_ai_add_post_term lacks proper capability checks before allowing modifications to taxonomy terms associated with posts. This means that any authenticated user with Contributor-level permissions or higher can add or remove tags and categories on posts they do not own, bypassing intended access controls. The plugin versions up to and including 3.41.0 are affected. Since Contributors typically have limited privileges, this escalation of capability to modify taxonomy terms on arbitrary posts can disrupt content classification, SEO, and site navigation. The vulnerability does not expose confidential data or affect availability directly but compromises data integrity. The attack vector is network-based (remote), requires low attack complexity, and no user interaction beyond authentication. No patches are currently linked, and no known exploits have been reported in the wild as of the publication date. The CVSS 3.1 score of 4.3 reflects a medium severity, primarily due to the integrity impact and ease of exploitation by authenticated users.

For European organizations, this vulnerability can undermine the integrity of website content management systems, particularly those relying on WordPress with the TaxoPress plugin. Unauthorized modification of taxonomy terms can lead to misclassification of content, affecting user experience, search engine optimization (SEO), and potentially the credibility of the organization’s online presence. In sectors such as media, e-commerce, education, and government, where content accuracy and classification are critical, this could result in misinformation, loss of trust, or operational disruptions. Although the vulnerability does not directly expose sensitive data or cause denial of service, the ability for lower-privileged users to alter content metadata on posts they do not own could be leveraged as part of a broader attack chain or insider threat. The impact is more pronounced in environments where Contributor-level access is granted to multiple users or where internal controls are lax. Given the widespread use of WordPress across Europe, the potential reach is significant, especially for organizations that have not updated or audited their plugins regularly.

European organizations should immediately audit their WordPress installations to identify the presence of the TaxoPress: Tag, Category, and Taxonomy Manager – AI Autotagger plugin and verify the version in use. Since no official patch links are currently available, organizations should consider the following mitigations: 1) Restrict Contributor-level permissions to trusted users only, minimizing the risk of unauthorized taxonomy changes. 2) Implement additional access control plugins or custom code to enforce capability checks on taxonomy modifications, effectively patching the missing authorization. 3) Monitor logs for unusual taxonomy term changes, especially those performed by Contributors or other lower-privileged roles. 4) Temporarily disable or remove the plugin if it is not critical to operations until an official patch is released. 5) Stay informed through vendor advisories and apply updates promptly once patches become available. 6) Conduct regular security reviews of WordPress user roles and permissions to ensure the principle of least privilege is enforced. 7) Employ web application firewalls (WAFs) with rules to detect and block suspicious taxonomy modification attempts.