Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HSummary
CVE-2025-3439 is a critical-severity Deserialization of Untrusted Data (CWE-502) vulnerability in Wpeverest Everest Forms. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked in the top 36% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
The Everest Forms plugin for WordPress, used for building contact forms, quizzes, surveys, and similar features, is affected by a PHP Object Injection vulnerability (CWE-502) in all versions through 3.1.1. The flaw stems from unsafe deserialization of untrusted data supplied in the field_value parameter, allowing an attacker to supply a serialized PHP object without authentication.
Unauthenticated remote attackers can supply crafted input to inject arbitrary PHP objects. Although the plugin itself contains no usable POP chain, the presence of a vulnerable chain from any other installed plugin or theme on the site can enable follow-on actions such as arbitrary file deletion, sensitive data disclosure, or remote code execution, consistent with the CVSS 9.8 rating.
Public references point to a patched changeset (3268742) in the WordPress plugin repository and a detailed advisory from Wordfence that identify the affected code path in html-admin-page-entries-view.php; administrators are therefore expected to apply the vendor update to eliminate the deserialization sink.
EPSS scores for the CVE rose from a low baseline to a recorded peak of 0.0448, indicating measurable growth in exploitation interest after public disclosure.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2025-10803
Vulnerability Data
The Everest Forms – Contact Form, Quiz, Survey, Newsletter & Payment Form Builder for WordPress plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to PHP Object Injection in all versions up to, and including, 3.1.1 via deserialization of untrusted input from the 'field_value'…
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parameter. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to inject a PHP Object. No known POP chain is present in the vulnerable software, which means this vulnerability has no impact unless another plugin or theme containing a POP chain is installed on the site. If a POP chain is present via an additional plugin or theme installed on the target system, it may allow the attacker to perform actions like delete arbitrary files, retrieve sensitive data, or execute code depending on the POP chain present.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Developer testing and evaluation can uncover deserialization flaws before deployment.
Input validation directly stops deserialization of untrusted data by ensuring inputs are valid before processing.
Engineering principles such as safe deserialization and input sanitization structurally prevent the weakness from being introduced.
Integrity verification tools can detect malformed or tampered serialized data after the fact.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
PR.PS-02 addresses only post-deployment updates/patching and cannot prevent introduction of unsafe deserialization code, yet it can remediate some instances when the flaw exists in outdated libraries or components.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Security testing includes validation of deserialization routines and the use of untrusted data, reducing the likelihood that unsafe object reconstruction will be deployed.
Requiring vetted libraries, regular updates and SAST before release reduces the likelihood that deserialization logic will accept and act on attacker-controlled serialized objects.
Regular scanning of third-party libraries and timely patching reduce the likelihood that unsafe deserialization vulnerabilities remain active.
Mandatory malware scanning of data received over networks or storage media intercepts malicious serialized payloads before they are deserialized by the target application.