CVE-2025-5953: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-vcvq-g63r-9f2v
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CVSS 8.8
CWE-862
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2025-5953 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.8) security vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-862: Missing Authorization) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The weakness occurs when the product does not perform an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2025-5953 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2025-5953
GHSA Identifier GHSA-vcvq-g63r-9f2v
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.8
CWE Classification CWE-862: Missing Authorization
Affected Product Software
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2025-5953

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Software dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

mvn dependency:tree

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2025-5953, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Software in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than the patched release), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-862: Missing Authorization, where the product does not perform an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action. In Software, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

The WP Human Resource Management plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation due to missing authorization in the ajax_insert_employee() and update_empoyee() functions in versions 2.0.0 through 2.2.17. The AJAX handler reads the client-supplied $_POST['role'] and, after basic cleaning via hrm_clean(), passes it directly to wp_insert_user() and later to $user->set_role() without verifying that the current user is allowed to assign that role. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Employee-level access and above, to elevate their privileges to administrator.

References

NVD — CVE-2025-5953 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-5953
plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.... WEB
https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.2.17/class/employee.php#L543
plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.... WEB
https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.2.17/class/employee.php#L591
plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.... WEB
https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.2.17/class/employee.php#L89
wordpress.org/plugins/hrm/ WEB
https://wordpress.org/plugins/hrm/#developers
www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulner... WEB
https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/3ba33a18-429f-4a3e-b018-bdfbbe6e8482?source=cve

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2025-5953?
CVE-2025-5953 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under CWE-862: Missing Authorization.
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2025-5953?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2025-5953?
CVE-2025-5953 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2025-5953?
CVE-2025-5953 is classified under CWE-862: Missing Authorization (The product does not perform an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2025-5953?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-vcvq-g63r-9f2v",
  "modified" : "2025-07-04T03:30:31Z",
  "published" : "2025-07-04T03:30:31Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2025-5953" ],
  "details" : "The WP Human Resource Management plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation due to missing authorization in the ajax_insert_employee() and update_empoyee() functions in versions 2.0.0 through 2.2.17. The AJAX handler reads the client-supplied $_POST['role'] and, after basic cleaning via hrm_clean(), passes it directly to wp_insert_user() and later to $user->set_role() without verifying that the current user is allowed to assign that role. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Employee-level access and above, to elevate their privileges to administrator.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-5953"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.2.17/class/employee.php#L543"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.2.17/class/employee.php#L591"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/hrm/tags/2.2.17/class/employee.php#L89"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://wordpress.org/plugins/hrm/#developers"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/3ba33a18-429f-4a3e-b018-bdfbbe6e8482?source=cve"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-862" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2025-07-04T03:15:21Z"
  }
}