CVE-2023-4140
CWE-269Published: August 4, 2023· Updated: Jun 17, 2026
Official Description
The WP Ultimate CSV Importer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation in versions up to, and including, 7.9.8 due to insufficient restriction on the 'get_header_values' function. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with minimal permissions such as an author, if the administrator previously grants access in the plugin settings, to modify their user role by supplying the 'wp_capabilities->cus1' parameter.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2023-4140 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.
CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown
Affected Vendors & Products
Exploit & PoC Resources
Official Patches & Advisories
All References (6)
Quick Facts
Related CVEs (CWE-269)
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2023-4140 in threat intel feeds
- →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts