CVE-2025-49238 is a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability identified in the Everest Backup plugin developed by everestthemes, affecting versions up to and including 2.3.3. CSRF vulnerabilities occur when an attacker tricks an authenticated user into submitting a forged HTTP request to a web application in which the user is currently authenticated. This can result in unauthorized actions being performed on behalf of the user without their consent. In this case, the vulnerability allows an attacker to craft malicious requests that, when executed by an authenticated user, could lead to unauthorized changes or operations within the Everest Backup plugin environment. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 4.3, indicating a medium severity level. The vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N indicates that the attack can be performed remotely over the network without privileges and with low attack complexity, but requires user interaction (the user must trigger the malicious request). The impact is limited to integrity (I:L) with no confidentiality or availability impact. No known exploits are currently in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-352, which specifically relates to CSRF attacks. Since Everest Backup is a WordPress plugin used for backup management, exploitation could allow attackers to manipulate backup configurations or trigger backup operations without authorization, potentially leading to data integrity issues or operational disruptions in backup processes.

For European organizations using the Everest Backup plugin, this vulnerability poses a moderate risk primarily to the integrity of backup configurations and operations. Successful exploitation could allow attackers to alter backup schedules, disable backups, or inject malicious backup data, potentially compromising the reliability of backup systems. This could hinder recovery efforts in case of data loss or ransomware attacks, indirectly increasing organizational risk. Given that backups are critical for business continuity, any unauthorized manipulation could have operational and compliance implications, especially under regulations like GDPR that mandate data integrity and availability. However, since exploitation requires user interaction and the attacker cannot escalate privileges or access confidential data directly, the immediate confidentiality and availability risks are limited. The lack of known active exploits reduces the immediate threat level but does not eliminate the risk, particularly for organizations with high reliance on this plugin and less stringent user security awareness.

Organizations should immediately audit their WordPress environments to identify installations of the Everest Backup plugin, particularly versions up to 2.3.3. Until an official patch is released, administrators should consider the following specific mitigations: 1) Restrict access to the WordPress admin interface to trusted IP addresses or VPNs to reduce exposure to CSRF attacks. 2) Implement or enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all users with access to backup management to reduce the risk of unauthorized actions. 3) Educate users about phishing and social engineering tactics that could lead to CSRF exploitation, emphasizing caution with unsolicited links or requests. 4) Use web application firewalls (WAFs) with CSRF protection rules or custom rules to detect and block suspicious requests targeting backup-related endpoints. 5) Regularly monitor backup logs and configurations for unauthorized changes or anomalies. 6) Consider temporarily disabling or replacing the Everest Backup plugin with alternative backup solutions that have no known vulnerabilities until a patch is available. 7) Follow everestthemes’ official channels for updates and apply patches promptly once released.