WordPress CVEs

Description

The WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 7.25.00 The vulnerability exists because the `start_comms` dispatcher (`wps_ic_comms::start_comms`), hooked on every front-end request, gates access only by comparing the caller-supplied `apikey` parameter against the stored plugin API key with no WordPress capability check and no nonce verification, then passes the unvalidated `group`, `setting`, and `value` parameters directly to `change_setting()`, which writes them into the `WPS_IC_SETTINGS` option without an allow-list. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to write arbitrary permission keys into the plugin's settings, causing `wps_ic_users::checkAndAddCaps()` to grant any WordPress role — including Subscriber — the `manage_wpc_settings` capability and thereby achieve plugin-administrator-equivalent control over the plugin's optimization, CDN, and critical-CSS surfaces. The API key required to pass the authorization check can itself be obtained without authentication via the `wpc_send_critical_remote` nopriv AJAX action: when the external critical-CSS service returns an `apiResults` field, `initCritical()` echoes the stored plugin API key back to the caller in a `wp_send_json_success` response, completing the exploit chain entirely without a WordPress login.

Affected WordPress components

• WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization Plugin · wp-compress-image-optimizer
  Confirmed match Active
  Up to and including 7.25.00
  View on WordPress.org

A confirmed match is backed by the plugin or theme slug. A possible match is based on the product name only and should be verified.

Affected products and versions

• aresit WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization — Up to and including 7.25.00

References

• plugins.trac.wordpress.org https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/wp-compress-image-optimizer/tags/7.10.03/addons/criticalCss/criticalCss.php#L409
• plugins.trac.wordpress.org https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/wp-compress-image-optimizer/tags/7.10.03/classes/ajax.class.php#L816
• plugins.trac.wordpress.org https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/wp-compress-image-optimizer/tags/7.10.03/classes/comms.class.php#L1042
• plugins.trac.wordpress.org https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/wp-compress-image-optimizer/tags/7.10.03/classes/comms.class.php#L49
• plugins.trac.wordpress.org https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/wp-compress-image-optimizer/tags/7.10.03/classes/users.class.php#L30
• plugins.trac.wordpress.org https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?reponame=&new=3734610%40wp-compress-image-optimizer%2Ftags%2F7.26.00&old=3723132%40wp-compress-image-optimizer%2Ftags%2F7.25.00
• www.wordfence.com https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/67e9bfb8-b274-422a-a50d-a6b6b24bb193?source=cve
• nvd.nist.gov Official NVD record