CVE-2025-3852 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting the WPshop 2 – E-Commerce plugin for WordPress, specifically versions 2.0.0 through 2.6.0. The vulnerability arises from improper privilege management (CWE-269) due to insufficient validation of user identity in the plugin's update() function. Authenticated attackers with subscriber-level access or higher can exploit this flaw to change arbitrary users' passwords, including those of administrators. This effectively allows privilege escalation via account takeover, enabling attackers to gain full control over administrator accounts. The vulnerability is remotely exploitable over the network without user interaction, requiring only low privileges (subscriber or above) to initiate the attack. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 8.8, reflecting high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The flaw compromises the authentication mechanism by allowing unauthorized modification of critical user credentials, which can lead to complete site takeover, data theft, manipulation of e-commerce transactions, and potential deployment of further malicious payloads or backdoors within affected WordPress installations. No known exploits are currently observed in the wild, but the ease of exploitation and the critical nature of administrator account compromise make this a significant threat to websites using this plugin.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a serious risk, especially for businesses relying on WordPress with the WPshop 2 – E-Commerce plugin to manage online sales. Successful exploitation can lead to unauthorized access to sensitive customer data, financial information, and order histories, potentially violating GDPR requirements around data protection and privacy. The compromise of administrator accounts can also result in website defacement, fraudulent transactions, or ransomware deployment, disrupting business operations and damaging brand reputation. E-commerce sites are often targeted for financial gain, and the ability to escalate privileges from low-level accounts increases the attack surface. Additionally, compromised sites may be used as launchpads for further attacks within corporate networks or to distribute malware to European customers. The impact extends beyond direct financial loss to include regulatory penalties and loss of customer trust.

Organizations should immediately audit their WordPress installations to identify the presence of the WPshop 2 – E-Commerce plugin and verify the version in use. Upgrading to a patched version beyond 2.6.0, once released by the vendor, is the primary mitigation step. Until a patch is available, administrators should consider disabling the plugin or restricting access to subscriber-level accounts to trusted users only. Implementing strict user role management and monitoring for unusual password changes or login activity can help detect exploitation attempts. Employing Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to block suspicious requests targeting the update() function may provide temporary protection. Regular backups and incident response plans should be reviewed and tested to ensure rapid recovery in case of compromise. Additionally, enforcing multi-factor authentication (MFA) for administrator accounts can reduce the risk of account takeover even if passwords are changed.