WordPress wordpress core

WordPress Core < 6.0.2 — Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via use of the_meta(); function

CVE-2022-4973Published Aug 30, 2022 · Updated Nov 13, 2026

Affected: ≤6.0.1Update to 3.7.39 or 3.8.39 or 3.9.37 or 4.0.36 or 4.1.36 or 4.2.33 or 4.3.29 or 4.4.28 or 4.5.27 or 4.6.24 or 4.7.24 or 4.8.20 or 4.9.21 or 5.0.17 or 5.1.14 or 5.2.16 or 5.3.13 or 5.4.11 or 5.5.10 or 5.6.9 or 5.7.7 or 5.8.5 or 5.9.4 or 6.0.2 or newer

Fixed versions are per release branch: update to the fix for the branch you run.

All remediation steps

Watch core

Medium4.9CVSS 3.14.9CISA KEVNot listedAccessLow-privilege account (e.g. subscriber)

On this page3

Overview

Advisory ID: CVE-2022-4973
Product: WordPress wordpress
Affected: ≤6.0.1
Fixed in: 3.7.39, 3.8.39, 3.9.37, 4.0.36, 4.1.36, 4.2.33, 4.3.29, 4.4.28, 4.5.27, 4.6.24, 4.7.24, 4.8.20, 4.9.21, 5.0.17, 5.1.14, 5.2.16, 5.3.13, 5.4.11, 5.5.10, 5.6.9, 5.7.7, 5.8.5, 5.9.4, 6.0.2
Weakness: CWE-79 Cross-Site Scripting
Required access: Low-privilege account (e.g. subscriber)
Published: Aug 30, 2022 · updated Nov 13, 2026
Credit: John Blackbourn
Source: Wordfence Intelligence

Affected≤ 6.0.1
Patched in3.7.39 / 3.8.39 / 3.9.37 / 4.0.36 / 4.1.36 / 4.2.33 / 4.3.29 / 4.4.28 / 4.5.27 / 4.6.24 / 4.7.24 / 4.8.20 / 4.9.21 / 5.0.17 / 5.1.14 / 5.2.16 / 5.3.13 / 5.4.11 / 5.5.10 / 5.6.9 / 5.7.7 / 5.8.5 / 5.9.4 / 6.0.2

4.9

CVSS 3.1 · CNA (Wordfence)

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

What does this vector mean?

AV:N Attack vector: Network
AC:H Attack complexity: High
PR:L Privileges required: Low
UI:N User interaction: None
S:C Scope: Changed
C:L Confidentiality: Low
I:L Integrity: Low
A:N Availability: None

WordPress Core, in versions up to 6.0.2, is vulnerable to Authenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting that can be exploited by users with access to the WordPress post and page editor, typically consisting of Authors, Contributors, and Editors making it possible to inject arbitrary web scripts into posts and pages that execute if the the_meta(); function is called on that page.

Not sure which version you run? Run a passive check — it reads public files only.

Remediation & mitigations

Update to one of the following versions, or a newer patched version: 3.7.39, 3.8.39, 3.9.37, 4.0.36, 4.1.36, 4.2.33, 4.3.29, 4.4.28, 4.5.27, 4.6.24, 4.7.24, 4.8.20, 4.9.21, 5.0.17, 5.1.14, 5.2.16, 5.3.13, 5.4.11, 5.5.10, 5.6.9, 5.7.7, 5.8.5, 5.9.4, 6.0.2
Rotate administrator passwords and application secrets if the site ran a vulnerable version while publicly reachable.

References & provenance

Proof-of-concept & detection

No public proof-of-concept or detection template is known for this vulnerability.

Advisories & patches

Advisorywordfence.com

Timeline

Aug 30, 2022
CVE published
Severity medium, CVSS 4.9
Nov 13, 2026
Record last updated

Sources & licenses

Wordfence record

Vulnerability data: Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. Licensed under the CC BY-SA 4.0.
CVE® identifiers: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. Used under the CVE Program. CVE® is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation.
CVSS / CWE: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), shown unmodified. This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.

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