Improper input validation in WordPress
CVE-2019-20041
wp_kses_bad_protocol in wp-includes/kses.php in WordPress before 5.3.1 mishandles the HTML5 colon named entity, allowing attackers to bypass input sanitization, as demonstrated by the javascript: substring.
Vulnerability class: Drupalgeddon 2 (CVE-2018-7600)
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 9.8 (Critical). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.047 (91.4th percentile), scored .
Low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, but still tracked. 91st percentile — 91.4% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.047 · newest: 0.047 · change: 0.000
Affected products
- WordPress
- Debian Linux — versions 8.0, 9.0, 10.0
Weakness classification (CWE)
Public proof-of-concept exploits
References
- wordpress.org/news/2019/12/wordpress-5-3-1-security-and-maintenance-release/ (Release Notes, Vendor Advisory)
- github.com/WordPress/wordpress-develop/commit/b1975463dd995da19bb40d3fa07864987… (Patch)
- seclists.org/bugtraq/2020/Jan/8 (mailing-list, Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
- www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4599 (vendor-advisory, Third Party Advisory)
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/01/msg00010.html (mailing-list, Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
- www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4677 (vendor-advisory, Third Party Advisory)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2019-20041?
- CVE-2019-20041 is a critical-severity vulnerability in WordPress, classified under Improper Input Validation. CVSS score: 9.8/10. Published 2019-12-27.
- How severe is CVE-2019-20041?
- Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.8 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2019-20041 known to be exploited?
- 8 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.