A critical privilege escalation vulnerability (CVE-2025-45615) has been identified in yaoqishan v0.0.1-SNAPSHOT, allowing unauthenticated attackers to gain administrative privileges through improper access control in the /admin/ API. The vulnerability was published on May 5, 2025, and carries a CVSS score of 9.8 (Critical). This flaw exposes systems running the affected software to complete compromise through crafted HTTP requests.
Technical Analysis
The vulnerability stems from missing authentication checks in the administrative API endpoints. According to the GitHub issue tracker1, attackers can send specially crafted POST requests to modify user roles without proper authorization. The NVD entry2 confirms the exploit requires no authentication and can be executed remotely.
The following HTTP request demonstrates the attack vector:
POST /admin/api/update_role HTTP/1.1
Host: vulnerable-app.com
{"user_id": "attacker", "role": "admin"}This request directly modifies user privileges due to insufficient validation in the API endpoint. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) and affects all deployments using yaoqishan v0.0.1-SNAPSHOT.
Impact and Detection
Successful exploitation grants attackers full administrative control over affected systems. This includes the ability to modify configurations, access sensitive data, and potentially deploy additional payloads. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous in multi-tenant environments where privilege separation is critical.
Detection can be achieved by monitoring for:
- Unauthenticated POST requests to /admin/api endpoints
- Unexpected user role changes in system logs
- New administrative accounts created from unusual IP addresses
Mitigation and Remediation
Until an official patch is released, organizations should implement the following countermeasures:
- Restrict network access to the administrative interface
- Implement role-based access control (RBAC) for all API endpoints
- Monitor for suspicious activity using the provided detection methods
System administrators should also review recent authentication logs for any signs of compromise, particularly focusing on unexpected privilege escalations or new administrative accounts.
Broader Context
This vulnerability follows a pattern of similar privilege escalation flaws discovered in 2025, including issues in WordPress plugins3 and Cisco Meeting Management4. The recurring theme of improper access control in API endpoints highlights the need for stricter input validation and authentication checks during development.
The yaoqishan vulnerability shares technical similarities with CVE-2025-3918 in WordPress Job Listings Plugin5, where unrestricted user_role parameters allowed privilege escalation. These cases demonstrate how common architectural patterns can lead to widespread vulnerabilities when security controls are overlooked.
Conclusion
CVE-2025-45615 represents a serious threat to systems running vulnerable versions of yaoqishan. The combination of remote exploitability, lack of authentication requirements, and critical impact warrants immediate attention from security teams. Organizations should prioritize implementing the recommended mitigations while awaiting an official patch from the maintainers.
This case reinforces the importance of proper access control implementation in web applications, particularly for administrative functionality. Security teams should review similar endpoints in their environments as part of proactive defense measures.
References
- “CVE-2025-45615 Detail,” National Vulnerability Database, May 5, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-45615
- “Issue #29: Admin API access control bypass,” GitHub, May 5, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://github.com/user-xiangpeng/yaoqishan/issues/29
- “CVE-2025-2563: WordPress User Registration & Membership Plugin ≤4.1.1,” NVD, Apr. 14, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-2563
- “Cisco Meeting Management REST API Privilege Escalation,” Cisco Security Advisory, Jan. 22, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://sec.cloudapps.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-cmm-privesc-uy2Vf8pc
- “CVE-2025-3918: WordPress Job Listings Plugin (0.1–0.1.1),” Tenable, May 3, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.tenable.com/cve/CVE-2025-3918
