CVE-2025-49899 identifies a Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Whydonate WordPress plugin developed by jjlemstra, affecting versions up to and including 4.0.15. The vulnerability arises because certain functionality within the plugin is not properly constrained by Access Control Lists (ACLs), allowing unauthorized users to invoke functions that should be restricted. This can lead to unauthorized access to sensitive operations or data, potentially enabling attackers to manipulate donation-related information or perform administrative actions without proper permissions. The vulnerability was reserved in June 2025 and published in October 2025, with no CVSS score assigned and no known exploits reported in the wild at the time of publication. Whydonate is a plugin designed to facilitate donation management on WordPress sites, commonly used by nonprofits and fundraising organizations. The lack of proper authorization checks means that attackers could exploit this flaw remotely, without authentication or user interaction, to gain unauthorized access to plugin functionality. This type of vulnerability is critical in web applications as it undermines the fundamental security principle of least privilege. The absence of a patch link indicates that a fix may not yet be available, emphasizing the need for immediate mitigation steps by administrators. The vulnerability's impact depends on the specific functions exposed and the sensitivity of the data or operations accessible through the plugin. Given the plugin's role in handling donations, exploitation could lead to financial fraud, data leakage, or disruption of fundraising activities.

For European organizations, especially nonprofits, charities, and fundraising platforms using the Whydonate plugin, this vulnerability poses a significant risk. Unauthorized access could lead to manipulation or theft of donation data, unauthorized changes to fundraising campaigns, or disruption of donation processing. This could result in financial losses, reputational damage, and loss of donor trust. Additionally, if attackers leverage this vulnerability to escalate privileges, they might gain broader access to the WordPress site, potentially compromising other sensitive data or services hosted on the same platform. The impact is heightened in Europe due to strict data protection regulations such as GDPR, where unauthorized data access can lead to regulatory penalties and legal consequences. Organizations relying on Whydonate for critical fundraising operations may face operational disruptions and increased incident response costs. The absence of known exploits currently provides a window for proactive defense, but the public disclosure increases the risk of future exploitation attempts.

1. Immediately audit all WordPress sites using the Whydonate plugin to identify affected versions (<= 4.0.15). 2. Restrict administrative and plugin management access to trusted personnel only, employing strong authentication methods such as MFA. 3. Monitor web server and application logs for unusual or unauthorized access attempts targeting Whydonate functionality. 4. Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block suspicious requests related to the plugin’s endpoints. 5. Follow jjlemstra’s official channels for patch releases and apply updates promptly once available. 6. If a patch is not yet available, consider temporarily disabling the Whydonate plugin or replacing it with alternative donation management solutions. 7. Conduct a thorough review of user roles and permissions within WordPress to ensure the principle of least privilege is enforced. 8. Educate site administrators about the risks of missing authorization vulnerabilities and encourage vigilance against phishing or social engineering that could facilitate exploitation. 9. Prepare incident response plans specific to potential exploitation scenarios involving donation data compromise.