Vulnerable plugins and themes are some of the most common vectors for attacks on WordPress websites. Our weekly WordPress Vulnerability Report, now powered by Patchstack, covers new WordPress plugins, themes, and core vulnerabilities that have emerged since last week’s report. Our goal is to spread awareness of emerging vulnerabilities and help you decide what to do if you are using one of these vulnerable plugins or themes on your website. For a deeper analysis of trends in WordPress vulnerabilities and threat vectors, see our 2022 Annual Vulnerability Report.
Please note the Metform Elementor Contact Form Builder plugin has an important update that patches two recently disclosed vulnerabilities. One is a high-risk XSS vulnerability. Update Metform to version 3.2.3 as soon as possible.
WordPress Core News
WordPress 6.1.1 was released on November 15, 2022, as a short-cycle maintenance release with 29 bug fixes in Core and 21 bug fixes for the block editor. Because this is a core update, be sure to update to WordPress 6.1.1 as soon as possible! As always, with a major release like this, ensure your site is backed up with BackupBuddy before updating.
WordPress 6.2 Beta 5
The first release candidate (RC1) for the WordPress 6.2 development cycle has been postponed two days, to Thursday, March 9, and an additional fifth Beta release came out on Tuesday, March 7. Additional time and testing were needed to deal with a regression that came to light last week. The project is still on track for the final release of WordPress 6.2 on March 28. You can get a preview of what’s coming in 6.2 thanks to Anne McCarthy and Rich Tabor, who hosted a live demo. Anne has also written a detailed overview.
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WordPress Plugin Vulnerabilities
In this section, you’ll find the most recently disclosed WordPress plugin vulnerabilities that have been fixed with a new release from their authors and maintainers. These vulnerabilities have been disclosed and scored for their severity thanks to our friends at Patchstack. Each plugin listing includes the type of vulnerability with its CVE number and CVSS severity rating with links to more technical details. You’ll also see the number of active sites using the plugin and the plugin version release that patches the vulnerability. We start with the most popular plugins, which represent the largest target for attackers.
WordPress Plugin Vulnerabilities – No Known Fix
This section contains plugin vulnerabilities with no known fix. Until a patch is available, you are advised to deactivate the plugin, at minimum, immediately. If there is a high risk of active exploits or the plugin remains unpatched for weeks, you are advised to delete the plugin. You should also delete persistently unpatched plugins the WordPress.org repository has locked and marked “Closed” so they can no longer be downloaded and installed.
WordPress Theme Vulnerabilities
In this section, you’ll find the latest WordPress theme vulnerabilities to be disclosed. You’ll see the same information provided above for vulnerable plugins, and the same advice applies. If a security update exists, install it immediately. If a vulnerability remains unpatched in a theme you are actively using, you will need to find an alternative theme. Deactivate and delete persistently unpatched themes and those that have been “Closed” in the WordPress.org theme repository. If you have a vulnerable theme installed that you are not actively using, simply delete it.