CVE-2023-1026 in WP Meta SEO Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 02/28/2023
The WP Meta SEO plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access of data due to a missing capability check on the listPostsCategory function in versions up to, and including, 4.5.3. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with subscriber-level access to get post listings by category as long as those posts are published. This vulnerability occurred as a result of the plugin relying on nonce checks as a means of access control, and that nonce being accessible to all authenticated users regardless of role.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/09/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-1026 affects the WP Meta SEO plugin for WordPress, specifically targeting versions up to and including 4.5.3. This represents a critical access control flaw that undermines the security model of the WordPress ecosystem. The vulnerability stems from a missing capability check within the listPostsCategory function, which is designed to retrieve post listings organized by category. The flaw allows authenticated attackers who possess subscriber-level privileges to access published post data that would normally be restricted to users with higher permissions. This unauthorized access capability directly violates fundamental security principles of role-based access control that WordPress and its plugins are designed to enforce. The vulnerability impacts the confidentiality aspect of the security triad by enabling information disclosure to users who should not have access to specific content listings.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the plugin's improper reliance on nonce checks as the sole mechanism for access control. Nonce values are typically used for validating the authenticity of requests and preventing cross-site request forgery attacks, but they are not intended to serve as access control mechanisms. In this case, the plugin's implementation fails to verify user capabilities before executing the listPostsCategory function, instead depending solely on the presence of a valid nonce. Since nonces are accessible to all authenticated users regardless of their role within the WordPress system, any user with subscriber-level access can exploit this vulnerability to retrieve published post listings organized by category. This flaw represents a classic example of insufficient authorization checks and violates the principle of least privilege that should govern all security-sensitive operations.
The operational impact of CVE-2023-1026 extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it provides attackers with valuable reconnaissance capabilities that could be leveraged in more sophisticated attacks. An attacker with subscriber access can gather intelligence about published content, identify patterns in content creation, and potentially discover sensitive information that might not otherwise be visible. This vulnerability enables what security professionals categorize as information gathering and reconnaissance activities that are often precursors to more serious attacks. The fact that the vulnerability affects published posts means that even content that was intended to be publicly accessible could be organized and analyzed in ways that were not intended by the content creators or site administrators. From an attacker perspective, this represents a low-effort, high-value exploit that could be automated and used to systematically gather information about content strategies, publishing patterns, and potentially identify content that might be vulnerable to other attacks.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which describes improper access control in software systems, and demonstrates how nonce-based validation can be insufficient for protecting sensitive operations. The issue also relates to ATT&CK technique T1213.002, which involves data from information repositories, where attackers can access data that should be restricted. Organizations using the affected plugin should immediately update to version 4.5.4 or later, which contains the necessary capability checks to prevent unauthorized access. Additionally, administrators should review user roles and permissions to ensure that only trusted users have subscriber-level access, and implement monitoring for unusual access patterns. The fix implemented by the plugin developers addresses the core issue by adding proper capability checks that verify user permissions before executing the listPostsCategory function, thereby restoring the intended security boundaries within the WordPress access control model.