CVE-2025-53485 SecurePoll: Unauthorized access to SetTranslationHandler allows arbitrary text changes
Unauthenticated users can modify election-related translation text due to missing admin validation in the SecurePoll extension.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2025-53485?
CVE-2025-53485 is a high-severity missing authorization vulnerability in Wikimedia Foundation Mediawiki - SecurePoll extension, published on 4 Jul 2025. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Official description
SetTranslationHandler.php does not validate that the user is an election admin, allowing any (even unauthenticated) user to change election-related translation text. While partially broken in newer MediaWiki versions, the check is still missing.
This issue affects Mediawiki - SecurePoll extension: from 1.39.X before 1.39.13, from 1.42.X before 1.42.7, from 1.43.X before 1.43.2.
Weakness: CWE-862
Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-53485?
How do I fix CVE-2025-53485?
No fix has been published for CVE-2025-53485 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Upgrade, and check permissions on every request on the server, not only in the interface. More about Missing authorization.
Is CVE-2025-53485 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-53485 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as GHSA-95xf-vj6c-3pj7.