Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2023-25059 is a stored cross-site scripting issue in the avalex WordPress plugin up to 3.0.3. It requires administrator-level access, so it is not an unauthenticated takeover bug. Business risk is mainly from compromised admins, shared admin environments, or chained attacks affecting other users.
Executive priority
Treat as a medium-priority remediation item. It is not evidenced as actively exploited, but affected public WordPress sites should be inventoried and updated or mitigated during the next maintenance window.
Technical view
The sources describe authenticated admin+ stored XSS in avalex, mapped to CWE-79 with CVSS 3.1 score 5.9. The vector shows network reachability, low complexity, high privileges required, user interaction required, changed scope, and low confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure appears limited to WordPress sites using the avalex - Automatically secure legal texts plugin at version 3.0.3 or earlier. The provided affected-version metadata is incomplete, so confirm installed plugin versions directly.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation evidence. Exploitation requires authenticated administrator-level privileges and user interaction, which reduces broad internet-scale urgency but still matters where admin accounts are shared, compromised, or delegated.
Researcher notes
Version evidence is partly inconsistent: the narrative says <= 3.0.3, while affected version metadata is sparse. Validation should focus on installed plugin presence, version, available vendor remediation, and whether administrator access boundaries are trustworthy.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory WordPress sites for the avalex plugin and installed version.
- Check avalex, WordPress, or Patchstack guidance for a fixed release.
- Update the plugin if vendor guidance identifies a patched version.
- Disable or remove the plugin where it is unnecessary or cannot be safely updated.
- Review administrator accounts for least privilege and suspicious access.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether avalex is installed on each WordPress site.
- Record the installed plugin version and compare it with <= 3.0.3 exposure.
- Check security sources for vendor remediation or patch availability.
- Review recent admin activity for unexpected plugin configuration changes.
- Verify no untrusted users hold administrator-level WordPress access.
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-79: User-session and phishing behavior lookup
Client-side and session-facing weaknesses should be reviewed alongside initial-access and user-execution behaviors. 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 lookupCVE-2023-25059 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
- Medium
- CVSS
- 5.9 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:L1.73.7Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
5.9MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:L
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://patchstack.com/database/vulnerability/avalex/wordpress-avalex-plugin-3-0-3-cross-site-scripting-xss?_s_id=cveCVE reference · vdb-entry
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.