Charitable – Donation Plugin for WordPress – Fundraising with Recurring Donations & More Security & Risk Analysis

The Charitable plugin v1.8.9.7 presents a mixed security posture. While it demonstrates good practices in areas like SQL query preparation (88%) and a significant number of nonce and capability checks, several concerning aspects warrant attention. The high number of AJAX handlers (94 total, 67 without authentication checks) creates a substantial attack surface, especially given that 67 taint flows were found with unsanitized paths. Although no critical or high severity taint flows are explicitly detailed, the presence of unsanitized paths in such a large number of entry points is a significant risk, potentially leading to vulnerabilities if input is not properly validated or escaped.

The plugin's vulnerability history is a significant concern. With 14 known CVEs, including 2 critical and 1 high severity, and common vulnerability types like SQL Injection, Cross-site Scripting, and Authorization Bypass, past security issues have been substantial. The fact that there are currently no unpatched vulnerabilities is a positive sign, but the historical pattern suggests a recurring struggle with securing certain aspects of the codebase. The last vulnerability being in late 2025 also indicates a recent history of security flaws.

In conclusion, while the Charitable plugin shows strengths in its efforts to secure SQL queries and implement checks, the large, unprotected attack surface, numerous unsanitized taint flows, and a history of critical vulnerabilities necessitate caution. Developers should prioritize addressing the unprotected AJAX endpoints and thoroughly auditing all input handling mechanisms. The historical trend of significant vulnerabilities suggests ongoing vigilance is required.