Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2023-7029 affects the WordPress MaxButtons plugin. A logged-in user with Contributor-level access or higher could place unsafe script content through plugin shortcodes. That script may run when someone views the affected page, creating a risk of account misuse or content tampering within WordPress.
Executive priority
Handle during normal vulnerability remediation cycles, but prioritize sites with many content contributors, external authors, or administrative users who view contributor-created pages. The issue is not known to be exploited from the supplied evidence, but stored XSS can affect privileged sessions.
Technical view
The issue is stored cross-site scripting caused by insufficient sanitization and output escaping of user-supplied shortcode attributes in MaxButtons versions up to and including 9.7.6. The CVSS 3.1 score is 6.4, with low privileges required, network attack vector, changed scope, and low confidentiality and integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on WordPress sites using MaxButtons at version 9.7.6 or earlier, especially where untrusted or lightly managed users have Contributor, Author, Editor, or Administrator access.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. Exploitation requires authenticated WordPress access at Contributor level or higher and a page or post where the injected shortcode content is rendered to visitors or administrators.
Researcher notes
The CVE states version 9.7.6 partially fixed the vulnerability while also listing versions up to and including 9.7.6 as affected. That creates remediation ambiguity; confirm the final fixed version from vendor or plugin repository guidance before closing findings.
Mitigation direction
- Identify all WordPress sites using the MaxButtons plugin.
- Treat MaxButtons versions 9.7.6 and earlier as exposed.
- Check vendor guidance for a complete remediation version or official fix.
- Restrict Contributor-level access to trusted users only.
- Disable the plugin if it is unnecessary or cannot be remediated promptly.
- Review affected content for suspicious MaxButtons shortcodes.
Validation and detection
- Confirm installed MaxButtons versions across WordPress environments.
- Review WordPress users with Contributor-level access or higher.
- Inspect posts and pages containing MaxButtons shortcodes.
- Check plugin changelog or vendor advisory for remediation status.
- Verify pages render without unexpected script execution after remediation.
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-79: 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-2023-7029 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
- 6.4 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/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:C/C:L/I:L/A:N3.12.7Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
6.4MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Source materials
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.
Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.