Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2022-25602 affects the Responsive Menu WordPress plugin. A leaked nonce could let a low-privileged authenticated user perform dangerous actions, including arbitrary file upload, theme deletion, and plugin settings changes. For affected sites, this is a high-priority WordPress exposure.
Executive priority
Treat this as urgent for any WordPress site using the affected plugin, especially public business sites with multiple user accounts. Prioritize inventory and update decisions before assuming exposure is theoretical.
Technical view
The issue is a CWE-200 nonce token leak in ExpressTech Responsive Menu versions <= 4.1.7. CVSS 3.1 is 8.3: network reachable, low complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction, with high confidentiality and integrity impact and low availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to WordPress sites running the ExpressTech Responsive Menu plugin at version 4.1.7 or earlier. CVSS indicates an attacker needs low privileges, so unauthenticated exploitation is not supported by the supplied evidence.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation. The vulnerability is still serious because low-privileged authenticated access may be enough to trigger high-impact plugin actions if the vulnerable version is present.
Researcher notes
Do not assume unauthenticated exploitation or active exploitation from the provided evidence. The key research focus is confirming affected plugin versions, reachable authenticated attack surface, nonce exposure conditions, and whether vendor guidance identifies a fixed release.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory WordPress sites for Responsive Menu plugin version <= 4.1.7.
- Follow WordPress.org and Patchstack guidance for the current fixed or safe version.
- Update the plugin from trusted WordPress sources when a fixed version is confirmed.
- Disable or remove the plugin where immediate update is not possible.
- Review recent admin users and plugin/theme changes for suspicious activity.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Responsive Menu by ExpressTech is installed on each WordPress site.
- Record the installed plugin version and compare it with the affected range <= 4.1.7.
- Check whether low-privileged user roles exist that could reach plugin functionality.
- Review WordPress audit logs for unexpected uploads, theme deletions, or settings changes.
- Verify remediation by confirming the vulnerable version is no longer active.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-200: Information exposure and cloud metadata lookup
Information exposure and SSRF weaknesses can make discovery, cloud metadata, and credential material review relevant. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCredential and access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references authentication or credential exposure, so valid-account and credential-access review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupFile access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references file access or upload behavior, so file telemetry and web shell review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2022-25602 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.3 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:L
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:L2.85.5Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.3HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:L
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://wordpress.org/plugins/responsive-menu/#developersCVE reference · x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://patchstack.com/database/vulnerability/responsive-menu/wordpress-responsive-menu-plugin-4-1-7-nonce-token-leak-leading-to-arbitrary-file-upload-theme-deletion-plugin-settings-change-vulnerabilityCVE reference · x_refsource_CONFIRM
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.