Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2020-37169 affects Ultimate Member plugin version 2.1.3 for WordPress. An authenticated attacker may abuse a file-inclusion flaw to make the application load unintended PHP files, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution. Exposure depends on whether the vulnerable plugin version is installed and reachable by authenticated users.
Executive priority
Prioritize affected internet-facing WordPress sites, especially those with many authenticated users. This is not evidenced as actively exploited in the supplied sources, but public exploit availability and possible code execution justify timely remediation.
Technical view
Sources describe CWE-98 local file inclusion in class-admin-upgrade.php. The vulnerable logic uses a pack parameter that can be manipulated to include unintended PHP files from the packages directory. CVSS 4.0 score is 6.8 with low privileges required and no user interaction.
Likely exposure
Likely exposure is WordPress sites running Ultimate Member 2.1.3. The source bundle does not identify other affected versions. Because privileges are required, risk is higher where many users can authenticate or compromised accounts are plausible.
Exploitation context
A public ExploitDB reference exists, so defenders should assume technical details are available. The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. Do not treat this as internet-wide unauthenticated exploitation based on the supplied evidence.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited to Ultimate Member 2.1.3 in the supplied bundle. The CVSS vector reports local attack vector but the description references authenticated POST requests, so validate reachable attack surface in your environment before scoring business risk.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory WordPress sites for Ultimate Member version 2.1.3.
- Check Ultimate Member or vendor guidance for fixed versions or official mitigations.
- Remove or disable affected unused installations where business impact allows.
- Limit WordPress account privileges and remove unnecessary authenticated users.
- Monitor for suspicious requests involving class-admin-upgrade.php and pack handling.
Validation and detection
- Confirm installed Ultimate Member versions across production, staging, and backups.
- Check whether any public or user-facing site runs version 2.1.3.
- Review WordPress user lists for stale, shared, or compromised accounts.
- Inspect web logs for unusual access to class-admin-upgrade.php.
- Document whether vendor guidance identifies a fixed replacement version.
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-98: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. 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 lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2020-37169 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
- Medium
- CVSS
- 6.8 (4.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
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.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
2 official scoresWe 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:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N——VulnCheckCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N1.83.6VulnCheckVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 4.0 score
6.8MediumVector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Base CVSS 3.1 score
5.5MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- ExploitDB-48065CVE reference, VulnCheck · exploit
- VulnCheck Advisory: WordPress Plugin ultimate-member 2.1.3 Local File InclusionCVE reference, VulnCheck · third-party-advisory
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 Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion')
Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.