Deserialization in WordPress
CVE-2018-20148
In WordPress before 4.9.9 and 5.x before 5.0.1, contributors could conduct PHP object injection attacks via crafted metadata in a wp.getMediaItem XMLRPC call. This is caused by mishandling of serialized data at phar:// URLs in the wp_get_attachment_thumb_file function in wp-includes/post.php.
Vulnerability class: Insecure Deserialization
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 9.8 (Critical). Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.268 (98.0th percentile), scored .
Moderate probability of exploitation in the next 30 days — watch for active exploitation reports. 98th percentile — 98.0% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.268 · newest: 0.268 · change: 0.000
Affected products
- WordPress
- Debian Linux — versions 8.0, 9.0
Weakness classification (CWE)
Public proof-of-concept exploits
References
- www.securityfocus.com/bid/106220 (VDB Entry, Third Party Advisory, vdb-entry)
- wordpress.org/support/wordpress-version/version-5-0-1/ (Release Notes, Vendor Advisory)
- blog.secarma.co.uk/labs/near-phar-dangerous-unserialization-wherever-you-are (Exploit, Third Party Advisory)
- codex.wordpress.org/Version_4.9.9 (Product, Vendor Advisory)
- wpvulndb.com/vulnerabilities/9171 (Vendor Advisory)
- www.zdnet.com/article/wordpress-vulnerability-affects-a-third-of-most-popular-w… (Third Party Advisory, Press/Media Coverage)
- www.debian.org/security/2019/dsa-4401 (vendor-advisory, Third Party Advisory)
- wordpress.org/news/2018/12/wordpress-5-0-1-security-release/ (Release Notes, Vendor Advisory)
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2019/02/msg00019.html (mailing-list, Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
- www.zdnet.com/article/wordpress-plugs-bug-that-led-to-google-indexing-some-user… (Third Party Advisory, Press/Media Coverage)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2018-20148?
- CVE-2018-20148 is a critical-severity vulnerability in WordPress, classified under Deserialization of Untrusted Data. CVSS score: 9.8/10. Published 2018-12-14.
- How severe is CVE-2018-20148?
- Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.8 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2018-20148 known to be exploited?
- 11 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.