Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2023-0713 lets a logged-in low-privilege WordPress user change Wicked Folders folder structure through an AJAX function intended for administrators. The impact is limited to plugin-managed organization data, but it can disrupt editorial workflows and content management order.
Executive priority
Treat as a moderate-priority hygiene fix. It is not a site takeover issue from the supplied evidence, but it can affect content operations wherever untrusted authenticated users exist.
Technical view
Wicked Folders versions up to and including 2.18.16 miss an authorization capability check in ajax_add_folder. An authenticated attacker with subscriber-level access or higher can invoke the function and modify plugin folder structure. The issue is CWE-862 with CVSS 3.1 score 5.4.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to WordPress sites running Wicked Folders <= 2.18.16 that allow untrusted or weakly controlled authenticated accounts, including subscribers. Public, membership, customer portal, or contributor-heavy sites have higher practical exposure.
Exploitation context
The supplied bundle does not identify active exploitation, and KEV is false. Exploitation requires authenticated WordPress access, so risk depends heavily on whether low-privilege accounts exist and how easily they can be created or compromised.
Researcher notes
Focus validation on the missing capability check around ajax_add_folder in the 2.18.16 plugin code and compare it with the referenced WordPress Trac changeset. Avoid assuming broader content edit, privilege escalation, or unauthenticated reach without additional evidence.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory WordPress sites using Wicked Folders and record installed plugin versions.
- Update Wicked Folders beyond 2.18.16 where available, following vendor or Wordfence guidance.
- Restrict or remove unnecessary subscriber and contributor accounts on affected sites.
- Monitor plugin folder changes for unauthorized or unexplained modifications.
- Check vendor guidance if no safe update path is available.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Wicked Folders is installed and enabled on each WordPress site.
- Verify the installed version is not 2.18.16 or earlier.
- Review WordPress users with subscriber-level or higher access for unnecessary accounts.
- Check administrative logs or plugin data for unexpected folder structure changes.
- Confirm remediation in a staging environment before production rollout.
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-862: 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-2023-0713 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
- 5.4 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L
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:N/I:L/A:L2.82.5Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
5.4MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/2764b360-228d-48c1-8a29-d3764e532799?source=cveCVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/wicked-folders/tags/2.18.16/lib/class-wicked-folders-ajax.phpCVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?sfp_email=&sfph_mail=&reponame=&new=2860994%40wicked-folders%2Ftrunk&old=2805161%40wicked-folders%2Ftrunk&sfp_email=&sfph_mail=CVE reference
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/2764b360-228d-48c1-8a29-d3764e532799CVE reference · x_transferred
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.
Missing Authorization
Missing Authorization represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.