Description
WordPress through 6.1.1 depends on unpredictable client visits to cause wp-cron.php execution and the resulting security updates, and the source code describes "the scenario where a site may not receive enough visits to execute scheduled tasks in a timely manner," but neither the installation guide nor the security guide mentions this default behavior, or alerts the user about security risks on installations with very few visits.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 26.10 | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 25.10 | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
Show 3 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | wordpress | No fix yet | — |
Public exploits
Exploit or proof-of-concept code for this vulnerability is publicly available, which lowers the bar for attackers. Treat it as a reason to patch sooner.
GitHub 1 repository
-
michael-david-fry/CVE-2023-22622 ★ 4 · Mar 20, 2024
Python Script that will DoS a WP server that is utilizing WP-CRON
Sources: PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit Framework, Exploit-DB — updated daily. Only links are listed; no exploit code is hosted here.
Advisories 1
- WID-SEC-2023-0023 WordPress: Schwachstelle ermöglicht Umgehen von Sicherheitsvorkehrungen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jan 5, 2023
References
- https://medium.com/%40thecpanelguy/the-nightmare-that-is-wpcron-php-ae31c1d3ae30
- https://www.tenable.com/plugins/was/113449
- https://github.com/WordPress/WordPress/blob/dca7b5204b5fea54e6d1774689777b359a9222ab/wp-cron.php#L5-L8
- https://developer.wordpress.org/plugins/cron/
- https://wordpress.org/about/security/
- https://wordpress.org/support/article/how-to-install-wordpress/
- https://patchstack.com/articles/solving-unpredictable-wp-cron-problems-addressing-cve-2023-22622/