CVE-2025-68885 identifies a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the Page Carbajal Custom Post Status plugin, which is used to manage custom post statuses within content management systems, likely WordPress. The vulnerability allows attackers to trick authenticated users into submitting forged requests that the server trusts, enabling unauthorized changes to post statuses. This CSRF flaw is compounded by the possibility of stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS), where malicious scripts injected via the forged requests persist on the server and execute in the context of other users' browsers. The vulnerability affects all versions up to 1.1.0, with no patches currently available. The CVSS 3.1 score of 7.1 indicates a high-severity issue with network attack vector, low attack complexity, no privileges required, but requiring user interaction. The scope is changed (S:C), meaning the vulnerability can affect resources beyond the initially compromised component. The impact includes partial loss of confidentiality, integrity, and availability, as attackers can manipulate content and execute malicious scripts that may steal data or disrupt service. Although no active exploits are reported, the presence of stored XSS elevates the risk of widespread impact if exploited. The vulnerability arises from insufficient CSRF protections, such as missing or ineffective anti-CSRF tokens, allowing attackers to craft malicious web pages that induce victims to perform unintended actions. This can lead to unauthorized content modifications, defacement, or injection of persistent malicious code, undermining user trust and system security.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses significant risks, especially for those relying on the affected plugin within their content management infrastructure. The ability to perform CSRF attacks combined with stored XSS can lead to unauthorized content manipulation, data leakage, session hijacking, and potential malware distribution. This can damage organizational reputation, lead to regulatory non-compliance (e.g., GDPR breaches due to data exposure), and disrupt business operations. The attack does not require prior authentication but does require user interaction, making phishing or social engineering plausible attack vectors. Organizations with public-facing websites or portals using the vulnerable plugin are at higher risk. The compromise of content integrity and availability can affect customer trust and lead to financial losses. Additionally, the stored XSS can be leveraged to escalate attacks internally or pivot to other systems. The lack of available patches increases exposure time, necessitating immediate compensating controls. Overall, the threat impacts confidentiality, integrity, and availability of web applications and user data, with potential cascading effects on broader IT infrastructure.

1. Immediately disable or uninstall the Page Carbajal Custom Post Status plugin if it is not critical to operations. 2. If the plugin must remain active, implement strict CSRF protections by ensuring all state-changing requests include validated anti-CSRF tokens. 3. Conduct a thorough code review or apply custom patches to enforce CSRF token validation on all relevant endpoints. 4. Monitor web server and application logs for unusual POST requests or patterns indicative of CSRF or XSS attempts. 5. Employ Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with rules designed to detect and block CSRF and XSS attack patterns targeting this plugin. 6. Educate users about phishing and social engineering risks that could trigger CSRF attacks. 7. Regularly update all CMS components and subscribe to vendor advisories for timely patching once available. 8. Implement Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to mitigate the impact of stored XSS by restricting script execution sources. 9. Conduct penetration testing focused on CSRF and XSS vectors to validate the effectiveness of mitigations. 10. Prepare incident response plans to quickly address any exploitation attempts.