# CVE-2025-15438: PluXml Media Management medias.php __destruct deserialization

> Remote attackers can achieve code execution via unsafe deserialization in PluXml's media management module, requiring immediate patching.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.1 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:L/VI:L/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 2 Jan 2026
- **Updated:** 23 Feb 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-8v28-3j53-xvq8, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-15438

## What is CVE-2025-15438?

CVE-2025-15438 is a medium-severity unsafe deserialization vulnerability in PluXml, published on 2 Jan 2026. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability was determined in PluXml up to 5.8.22. Affected is the function FileCookieJar::__destruct of the file core/admin/medias.php of the component Media Management Module. Executing a manipulation of the argument File can lead to deserialization. The attack can be launched remotely. The exploit has been publicly disclosed and may be utilized. The vendor was informed early about this issue and announced that "[w]e fix this issue in the next version 5.8.23". A patch for it is ready.

Weakness: CWE-502 (Deserialization of Untrusted Data), CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-15438?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Pluxml Pluxml.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-15438?

No fix has been published for CVE-2025-15438 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2025-15438 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-15438 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in PluXml

- [CVE-2020-18185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-18185/): Code injection in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2024-22636](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-22636/): Code injection in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2022-25018](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-25018/): Code injection in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2012-2227](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-2227/): Path traversal in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2007-3432](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2007-3432/): File upload in n/a (high 7.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-15438 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-15438 is a medium-severity unsafe deserialization vulnerability in PluXml, published on 2 Jan 2026. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-15438 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: PluXml. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-15438/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-15438/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-15438
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-15438
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-15438

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-15438/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.