Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
KingComposer for WordPress versions through 2.9.3 exposed a security token in the admin dashboard. A logged-in attacker could abuse it to change site settings, remove files or folders, and inject content. That creates business risk for site defacement, data exposure, and service disruption.
Executive priority
Treat this as a high-priority website integrity issue. Patch or disable affected KingComposer installations promptly, especially on public-facing WordPress sites with multiple user accounts.
Technical view
CVE-2020-36700 is an improper access control issue in Page Builder: KingComposer. A leaked nonce on /wp-admin/index.php permits authenticated, low-privilege network attackers to bypass authorization and perform high-impact actions, reflected by CVSS 3.1 score 8.8 and high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to WordPress sites running Page Builder: KingComposer up to and including 2.9.3, especially where non-administrator users can log in or where credentials may be compromised.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or cited evidence of active exploitation. Practical risk remains significant because exploitation requires only authenticated access and no user interaction, according to the supplied CVSS vector.
Researcher notes
The record identifies CWE-284 and an authorization bypass caused by nonce leakage on the admin index page. Evidence supports high impact after authentication, but the bundle does not provide exploit telemetry or detailed vendor remediation beyond the fixed version boundary.
Mitigation direction
- Update Page Builder: KingComposer to version 2.9.4 or later.
- If updating is unavailable, disable the plugin and check vendor guidance.
- Restrict WordPress login access to trusted users only.
- Review WordPress users for unnecessary or stale accounts.
- Back up the site before remediation where operationally required.
Validation and detection
- Inventory WordPress sites for the KingComposer plugin.
- Confirm installed KingComposer versions are not 2.9.3 or earlier.
- Review WordPress options, pages, and posts for unauthorized changes.
- Check web content and uploads for unexpected deletions or injected material.
- Review authenticated user activity around suspected exposure windows.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-284: Authorization and privilege behavior lookup
Authorization weaknesses can support privilege escalation and valid-account review, depending on exploit path. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupPrivilege behavior lookup
The CVE wording references privilege impact, so privilege escalation and authorization behavior review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2020-36700 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H2.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.8HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/1bdba04e-df4d-4094-877e-611d69e2e25d?source=cveCVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/wordpress-kingcomposer-page-builder-fixed-multiple-critical-vulnerabilities/CVE reference
- https://wordpress.org/plugins/kingcomposer/#developersCVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?sfp_email=&sfph_mail=&reponame=&old=2320014%40kingcomposer&new=2320014%40kingcomposer&sfp_email=&sfph_mail=CVE reference
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Improper Access Control
Improper Access Control represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.