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CVE Record

CVE-2023-6855: Paid Memberships Pro <= 2.12.5 - Missing Authorization via API

The Paid Memberships Pro – Content Restriction, User Registration, & Paid Subscriptions plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized modification of membership levels created by the plugin due to an incorrectly implemented capability check in the pmpro_rest_api_get_permissions_check function in all versions up to 2.12.5 (inclusive). This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to change membership levels including prices.

MediumCVSS 5.3Not KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

A public WordPress site using Paid Memberships Pro 2.12.5 or earlier could let an unauthenticated attacker alter membership levels, including prices. The main business risk is revenue or access-policy manipulation, not data theft or service outage based on the cited CVSS impact.

Executive priority

Treat this as a near-term patching issue for revenue-generating membership sites. It is not rated critical, but unauthorized price or membership-level changes can create direct financial and trust impact.

Technical view

CVE-2023-6855 is a missing authorization flaw in the plugin's REST API permission check, specifically pmpro_rest_api_get_permissions_check. Versions up to and including 2.12.5 could allow unauthenticated modification of plugin-created membership levels. The issue maps to CWE-862 and has CVSS 3.1 score 5.3.

Likely exposure

Exposure is likely limited to WordPress sites running Paid Memberships Pro up to 2.12.5 with the affected REST API code present. The source bundle does not identify other products, forks, or hosted services as affected.

Exploitation context

The CVE is not listed as KEV, and the provided sources do not cite active exploitation. The attack is network-reachable, low complexity, requires no privileges or user interaction, but cited impact is limited to integrity changes.

Researcher notes

Evidence supports missing authorization in the plugin REST API and unauthenticated integrity impact. The bundle does not provide exploit telemetry, exact fixed release text, or broader affected-product evidence, so avoid claims beyond Paid Memberships Pro through 2.12.5.

Mitigation direction

  • Upgrade Paid Memberships Pro beyond 2.12.5, following vendor or WordPress plugin guidance.
  • Review vendor guidance and the referenced changeset before assuming remediation is complete.
  • Restrict administrative access and monitor membership-level changes until patched.
  • Back up and verify membership levels and pricing after remediation.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory WordPress sites for Paid Memberships Pro versions up to 2.12.5.
  • Confirm patched code includes the corrected REST API permission behavior.
  • Review membership levels and prices for unexpected recent changes.
  • Check web and WordPress logs for suspicious REST API activity.
  • Verify no affected plugin copy remains in staging or backup deployments.
Prepared
Confidence
high
Sources
6

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

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 · medium confidence lookup

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.

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cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2023-6855 mapping review

Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Medium
CVSS
5.3 (3.1)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N

Official CVE source material

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.

1CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
4Source links

CVSS vector scores

1 official score

We 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.

ScoreVersionSeverityVectorExploitImpactSource
5.3CVSS 3.1MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N3.91.4Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.1 score

5.3Medium
CVSS 3.1 vector shape for CVE-2023-6855Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N

Attack Vector
NetworkAdjacentLocalPhysical
Attack Complexity
LowHigh
Privileges Required
NoneLowHigh
User Interaction
NoneRequired
Scope
ChangedUnchanged
Confidentiality Impact
HighLowNone
Integrity Impact
HighLowNone
Availability Impact
HighLowNone

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
strangerstudiosPaid Memberships Pro – Content Restriction, User Registration, & Paid Subscriptions0unaffected
Weakness

CWE details

CWE-862

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.