CVE-2025-2563: User Registration & Membership (WordPress plugin) · Insecure Direct Object Reference
Affects User Registration & Membership (WordPress plugin)Source CVE Database V5
Public exploit available (Metasploit) · 49% EPSS · CVSS 8.1 High.
Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC
- EPSS
- 49.0% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 98% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 14 Apr 2025
Detectable: evidence found.
nuclei template: User Registration & Membership <= 4.1.1 - Unauthenticated Privilege Escalation
Weaponised: evidence found.
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors
A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.
What to do
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| User Registration & Membership | Affected
| Fixed in– |
AI-suggested
- Immediate upgrade: Organizations should verify their WordPress installations for the User Registration & Membership plugin and ensure it is updated to version 4.1.2 or later where the vulnerability is fixed.
- Access controls: Temporarily disable the Membership Addon if an immediate update is not feasible, as this addon is necessary for exploitation.
- Input validation: Implement additional server-side validation or web application firewall (WAF) rules to block requests attempting to set user roles during registration.
- Monitoring and logging: Enable detailed logging of user registration activities and monitor for suspicious attempts to assign elevated roles.
- Principle of least privilege: Review and minimize the number of users with administrative privileges to reduce potential damage.
- Incident response readiness: Prepare to respond to potential compromises by having backups, forensic tools, and recovery plans in place.
- Vendor communication: Stay informed through official plugin channels for patches and advisories. These steps go beyond generic advice by focusing on immediate plugin-specific actions, compensating controls, and proactive monitoring tailored to this vulnerability.
Description
The User Registration & Membership WordPress plugin before 4.1.2 does not prevent users to set their account role when the Membership Addon is enabled, leading to a privilege escalation issue and allowing unauthenticated users to gain admin privileges