CVE-2022-2436
CWE-502Published: September 6, 2022· Updated: Jun 17, 2026
Official Description
The Download Manager plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to deserialization of untrusted input via the 'file[package_dir]' parameter in versions up to, and including 3.2.49. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with contributor privileges and above to call files using a PHAR wrapper that will deserialize the data and call arbitrary PHP Objects that can be used to perform a variety of malicious actions granted a POP chain is also present. It also requires that the attacker is successful in uploading a file with the serialized payload.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2022-2436 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.
Exploitation requires low privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.
A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 8.8.
From a weakness classification perspective (CWE-502): Insecure deserialization vulnerabilities allow attackers to inject malicious objects during deserialization, potentially enabling remote code execution.
CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown
Affected Vendors & Products
Exploit & PoC Resources
Official Patches & Advisories
All References (8)
Quick Facts
Related CVEs (CWE-502)
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2022-2436 in threat intel feeds
- →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts