Subscriber-to-Administrator escalation via unchecked endpoint authorization
Published Aug 2, 2025 · Updated Apr 8, 2026
Privilege escalation in SEO Metrics 1.0.15 and earlier allows remote authenticated users to obtain administrator cookies via an exposed endpoint. The seo_metrics_handle_connect_button_click() AJAX handler validates only a nonce, exposing a token that seo_metrics_handle_custom_endpoint() accepts without a capability check. Subscriber-level access is required, and the returned administrator cookies permit full administrative control of the WordPress site.
Summary
What happened
Privilege escalation in SEO Metrics 1.0.15 and earlier allows remote authenticated users to obtain administrator cookies via an exposed endpoint. The seo_metrics_handle_connect_button_click() AJAX handler validates only a nonce, exposing a token that seo_metrics_handle_custom_endpoint() accepts without a capability check. Subscriber-level access is required, and the returned administrator cookies permit full administrative control of the WordPress site.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2025-6754
- Published
- Aug 2, 2025
- Updated
- Apr 8, 2026
- Vendor
- SEO Metrics
- Product
- SEO Metrics
- Classifications
- CWE-862, T1078
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 2, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Apr 8, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0 <=1.0.15
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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