Deserialization in WordPress
CVE-2022-21663
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MariaDB database. On a multisite, users with Super Admin role can bypass explicit/additional hardening under certain conditions through object injection. This has been patched in WordPress version 5.8.3. Older affected versions are also fixed via security release, that go back till 3.7.37. We strongly recommend that you keep auto-updates enabled. There are no known workarounds for this issue.
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 6.6 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.037 (89.3th percentile), scored .
Low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, but still tracked. 89th percentile — 89.3% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.037 · newest: 0.037 · change: 0.000
Affected products
- WordPress
- WordPress Wordpress-Develop — versions < 5.8.3
- Debian Linux — versions 9.0, 10.0, 11.0
- Fedoraproject Fedora — versions 34, 35
Weakness classification (CWE)
Public proof-of-concept exploits
References
- wordpress.org/news/2022/01/wordpress-5-8-3-security-release/ (Release Notes, Vendor Advisory)
- github.com/WordPress/wordpress-develop/security/advisories/GHSA-jmmq-m8p8-332h (Third Party Advisory)
- www.debian.org/security/2022/dsa-5039 (vendor-advisory, Third Party Advisory)
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/… (vendor-advisory)
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/… (vendor-advisory)
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/01/msg00019.html (mailing-list, Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
- blog.sonarsource.com/wordpress-object-injection-vulnerability/ (Exploit, Third Party Advisory)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2022-21663?
- CVE-2022-21663 is a medium-severity vulnerability in WordPress, classified under Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component (Injection). CVSS score: 6.6/10. Published 2022-01-06.
- How severe is CVE-2022-21663?
- Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 6.6 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2022-21663 known to be exploited?
- 5 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.