Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
A malicious site or link could make a logged-in WordPress administrator unknowingly change Rucy-related post metadata. The sources do not describe server takeover or data theft, but unauthorized metadata changes can still affect site content behavior and integrity.
Executive priority
Treat as a moderate-priority WordPress hygiene issue. It needs timely remediation on sites using Rucy, especially where administrators manage high-value content, but the sources do not support emergency handling for active exploitation.
Technical view
Rucy for WordPress through version 0.4.4 lacks or incorrectly validates a nonce in save_rc_post_meta(), creating a CSRF issue. An unauthenticated attacker needs administrator interaction. CVSS 3.1 is 4.3 with low integrity impact and no stated confidentiality or availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to WordPress sites with the Rucy plugin installed at version 0.4.4 or earlier. Sites without Rucy, or with versions not covered by the source bundle, should not be assumed affected.
Exploitation context
The CVE is not listed as KEV, and the source bundle provides no evidence of active exploitation. Abuse requires tricking a logged-in administrator into taking an action, such as following a crafted link.
Researcher notes
Primary weakness is CWE-352 in save_rc_post_meta() nonce handling. The public bundle identifies affected versions through 0.4.4 and administrator interaction requirements, but it does not provide exploit status, payload details, or a definitive fixed version.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory WordPress sites for the Rucy plugin and version.
- Update Rucy if vendor guidance identifies a fixed release.
- Disable or remove Rucy where it is unused or cannot be updated.
- Limit administrator browsing while logged into WordPress.
- Check vendor and Wordfence guidance before assuming remediation is complete.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Rucy is installed on each WordPress site.
- Verify installed Rucy versions are not 0.4.4 or earlier.
- Review administrator-accessible workflows involving Rucy post metadata changes.
- Check logs for unexpected post metadata changes around administrator sessions.
- Document any compensating controls if the plugin remains installed.
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-352: User-session and phishing behavior lookup
Client-side and session-facing weaknesses should be reviewed alongside initial-access and user-execution behaviors. 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 lookupCVE-2021-4396 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
- 4.3 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A: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.
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:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N2.81.4Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
4.3MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/595d0401-55b9-418e-8b99-48b23e9a2662?source=cveCVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/25-wordpress-plugins-vulnerable-to-csrf-attacks/CVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/more-wordpress-plugins-and-themes-vulnerable-to-csrf-attacks/CVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/multiple-wordpress-plugins-fixed-csrf-vulnerabilities-part-3/CVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/multiple-wordpress-plugins-fixed-csrf-vulnerabilities-part-2/CVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/multiple-wordpress-plugins-fixed-csrf-vulnerabilities-part-1/CVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/multiple-wordpress-plugins-fixed-csrf-vulnerabilities-part-5/CVE reference
- https://blog.nintechnet.com/multiple-wordpress-plugins-fixed-csrf-vulnerabilities-part-4/CVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/rucy/trunk/inc/class-rucy-editor.php#L237CVE 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.