
SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Security & Risk Analysis
wordpress.org/plugins/surflinkAll-in-one Link management: Link Shortener, Auto Linking, Broken Link Checker, Search & Replace, Redirects, 404/410 Manager, Backup & Restore, …
Is SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Safe to Use in 2026?
Generally Safe
Score 99/100SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore has a strong security track record. Known vulnerabilities have been patched promptly. It's a solid choice for most WordPress installations.
The Surflink v2.5.3 plugin demonstrates a generally good security posture with many positive indicators. The vast majority of SQL queries utilize prepared statements, and output escaping is nearly perfect, suggesting a strong understanding of common web vulnerabilities. The absence of known CVEs and a clean vulnerability history further bolster this impression. However, several areas warrant attention. A significant attack surface of 52 AJAX handlers is present, with 9 of these lacking authentication checks. This is a critical concern, as it potentially allows unauthenticated users to trigger plugin functionality. Furthermore, the presence of the `unserialize` function and 7 high-severity taint flows with unsanitized paths indicate potential risks related to deserialization vulnerabilities or mishandling of user-controlled data within the code. While the plugin has no recorded vulnerabilities, these static analysis findings highlight areas where new vulnerabilities could emerge if not addressed. The bundled Freemius v1.0 library, while not explicitly stated as outdated, should be monitored for known vulnerabilities. Overall, Surflink v2.5.3 has strengths in data handling and output sanitization, but the substantial number of unprotected AJAX endpoints and concerning taint flows introduce notable risks that require immediate remediation.
Key Concerns
- Unprotected AJAX handlers
- High severity taint flows
- Dangerous unserialize function used
SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Security Vulnerabilities
CVEs by Year
Severity Breakdown
1 total CVE
SurfLink < 2.6.0 - Missing Authorization to Authenticated (Subscriber+) 410 Gone URL Import via 'surfl_import_410' AJAX Action
SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Release Timeline
SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Code Analysis
Dangerous Functions Found
Bundled Libraries
SQL Query Safety
Output Escaping
Data Flow Analysis
SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Attack Surface
AJAX Handlers 52
WordPress Hooks 25
Maintenance & Trust
SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Maintenance & Trust
Maintenance Signals
Community Trust
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SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore Developer Profile
3 plugins · 30 total installs
How We Detect SurfLink – Link Manager & Backup Restore
Patterns used to identify this plugin on WordPress sites during automated security audits and web crawling.
Asset Fingerprints
/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/js/surfl.js/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/js/redirects.js/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/css/surfl.css/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/css/enhanced-redirects.css/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/css/404-manager.css/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/css/shortcodes.css/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/css/login-hider.css/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/js/surfl.js/wp-content/plugins/surflink/assets/js/redirects.jssurfl.js?ver=redirects.js?ver=surfl.css?ver=enhanced-redirects.css?ver=404-manager.css?ver=shortcodes.css?ver=login-hider.css?ver=HTML / DOM Fingerprints
surfl-dashboard-wrappersurfl-admin-menusurfl-dashboard-titlesurfl-dashboard-contentsurfl-redirects-tablesurfl-redirect-rowsurfl-404-listsurfl-shortcode-editor-button+2 more<!-- DO NOT REMOVE THIS IF, IT IS ESSENTIAL FOR THEfunction_exists CALL ABOVE TO PROPERLY WORK.Include Freemius SDK.Init Freemius.+20 moredata-surfl-iddata-redirect-iddata-shortcode-typedata-login-hider-settingsurflJqObjSURFL_AJAX_REDIRECTSSURFL_LOGINHIDER_SETTINGSsurfl_localize_data/wp-json/surflink/v1/redirects/wp-json/surflink/v1/404/wp-json/surflink/v1/settings/wp-json/surflink/v1/loginhider[surfl_redirect_list][surfl_404_log][surfl_login_hider_status][surfl_link_shortener_form]