Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This vulnerability affects the WordPlus Better Messages plugin for WordPress versions 1.9.10.57 and earlier. A logged-in user with subscriber-level access or higher could trigger resource exhaustion that disrupts site availability. The issue impacts uptime, not confidentiality or data integrity, based on the supplied CVSS vector.
Executive priority
Treat this as a high-priority availability risk for WordPress sites that rely on Better Messages and allow many low-privilege users. Prioritize remediation for customer-facing, revenue-generating, or support-critical sites; lower urgency where the plugin is absent or subscriber accounts are tightly controlled.
Technical view
CVE-2022-33142 is an authenticated network-accessible denial-of-service issue in Better Messages <= 1.9.10.57, categorized as CWE-400 resource consumption. CVSS 3.1 is 7.7 high, with low attack complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction, changed scope, and high availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to WordPress sites running Better Messages versions <= 1.9.10.57 where untrusted or broadly issued subscriber accounts exist. Public login or registration increases practical risk. The sources do not identify CPEs or deployment-specific prerequisites beyond subscriber-plus authentication.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not show CISA KEV listing and provides no cited evidence of active exploitation. Because the attack requires an authenticated subscriber-or-higher account, risk depends on how easily users can obtain accounts and whether site availability is business-critical.
Researcher notes
The public details in the supplied bundle are sparse. The CVSS vector indicates authenticated, low-complexity, network-triggered resource exhaustion with availability-only impact. Do not assume exploit details, affected endpoints, or fixed versions beyond checking vendor and Patchstack guidance.
Mitigation direction
- Identify WordPress sites using Better Messages and record installed plugin versions.
- Upgrade or remove Better Messages if running version 1.9.10.57 or earlier.
- Check the WordPress plugin page and Patchstack entry for vendor remediation guidance.
- Restrict subscriber account creation where public registration is unnecessary.
- Apply rate limiting or abuse controls for authenticated messaging workflows where supported.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Better Messages is installed on each WordPress site.
- Verify the installed plugin version is later than 1.9.10.57.
- Review WordPress user registration settings and subscriber account issuance controls.
- Check uptime, application, and resource metrics for unusual authenticated activity.
- Document affected sites, remediation status, and remaining compensating controls.
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-400: 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 lookupCVE-2022-33142 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
- 7.7 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/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:C/C:N/I:N/A:H3.14Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.7HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://wordpress.org/plugins/bp-better-messages/#developersCVE reference · x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://patchstack.com/database/vulnerability/bp-better-messages/wordpress-better-messages-plugin-1-9-10-57-denial-of-service-dos-vulnerabilityCVE reference · x_refsource_CONFIRM
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.
Uncontrolled Resource Consumption
Uncontrolled Resource Consumption represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.