Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a WordPress plugin authorization flaw. A logged-in user with subscriber-level access could modify galleries attached to posts or pages when Gallery Metabox is running vulnerable versions up to 1.5. The impact is limited to integrity of gallery content, not data theft or service outage based on the provided CVSS vector.
Executive priority
Treat as a moderate-priority integrity issue. It should be handled in routine vulnerability management, with faster action for sites that allow public account registration, host customer-managed content, or depend on gallery accuracy for brand or commerce workflows.
Technical view
CVE-2023-2561 is CWE-862 in Gallery Metabox for WordPress. The gallery_remove function lacks a capability check, allowing low-privileged authenticated users to alter gallery attachments. CVSS 3.1 is 4.3: network reachable, low complexity, low privileges, no user interaction, unchanged scope, low integrity impact only.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to WordPress sites that installed Gallery Metabox in versions up to and including 1.5, especially sites allowing subscriber accounts. Sites without the plugin, without vulnerable versions, or without low-privileged user accounts have lower practical exposure.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or cited evidence of active exploitation. Exploitation requires an authenticated subscriber-level attacker, so risk increases on public-registration sites, membership sites, or any site with many low-trust WordPress users.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports missing authorization in gallery_remove and low-privilege authenticated impact. The provided bundle does not include a named fixed version, patch details, or exploitation evidence, so remediation should be validated against current vendor or Wordfence guidance rather than assumed.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory WordPress sites for Gallery Metabox and identify installed versions.
- Check vendor or Wordfence guidance for an available fixed version before updating.
- Disable or remove the plugin where it is unnecessary or no verified fix is available.
- Restrict subscriber registration and audit low-privileged accounts on affected sites.
- Review gallery content on important posts and pages for unauthorized changes.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether Gallery Metabox is installed on each WordPress instance.
- Verify installed plugin versions against the affected range: up to and including 1.5.
- Check whether untrusted users have subscriber-level accounts.
- Review recent post and page gallery changes for unexpected modifications.
- Confirm remediation against current vendor or Wordfence advisory information.
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 lookupCVE-2023-2561 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:L/UI:N/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:L/UI:N/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:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N
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.