CVE-2020-35948
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It...
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It gave authenticated attackers the ability to modify arbitrary files, including PHP files. Doing so would allow an attacker to achieve remote code execution. The xcloner_restore.php write_file_action could overwrite wp-config.php, for example. Alternatively, an attacker could create an exploit chain to obtain a database dump.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- Low
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It gave authenticated attackers the ability to modify arbitrary files, including PHP files. Doing so would allow an attacker to achieve remote code execution. The xcloner_restore.php write_file_action could overwrite wp-config.php, for example. Alternatively, an attacker could create an exploit chain to obtain a database dump.
- Record
CVE-2020-35948- CVSS 3.1
- 9.9 Critical
CVSS:3.1/AC:L/AV:N/A:H/C:H/I:H/PR:L/S:C/UI:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2020-23531
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It gave authenticated attackers the ability to modify arbitrary files, including PHP files. Doing so would allow an attacker to achieve remote code execution. The xcloner_restore.php write_file_action could overwrite wp-config.php, for example. Alternatively, an attacker could create an exploit chain to obtain a database dump.
- Record
EUVD-2020-23531- CVSS 3.1
- 9.9 Critical
CVSS:3.1/AC:L/AV:N/A:H/C:H/I:H/PR:L/S:C/UI:N - Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-p2jc-8hc7-j466 No score
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It...
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It gave authenticated attackers the ability to modify arbitrary files, including PHP files. Doing so would allow an attacker to achieve remote code execution. The xcloner_restore.php write_file_action could overwrite wp-config.php, for example. Alternatively, an attacker could create an exploit chain to obtain a database dump.
- Record
GHSA-p2jc-8hc7-j466- Weakness
- CWE-732, CWE-863
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It gave authenticated attackers the ability to modify arbitrary files, including PHP files. Doing so would allow an attacker to achieve remote code execution. The xcloner_restore.php write_file_action could overwrite wp-config.php, for example. Alternatively, an attacker could create an exploit chain to obtain a database dump.
- Record
CVE-2020-35948- CVSS 3.1
- 9.9 Critical
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H - CVSS 3.1
- 8.8 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - CVSS 2.0
- 6.5 Medium
AV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:P/I:P/A:P - Weakness
- CWE-863
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
An issue was discovered in the XCloner Backup and Restore plugin before 4.2.13 for WordPress. It gave authenticated attackers the ability to modify arbitrary files, including PHP files. Doing so would allow an attacker to achieve remote code execution. The xcloner_restore.php write_file_action could overwrite wp-config.php, for example. Alternatively, an attacker could create an exploit chain to obtain a database dump.
- Record
CVE-2020-35948- CVSS 3.1
- 8.8 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Public exploits
Links only. Every CVE stores no exploit code.
| Source | Link | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Exploit-DB | Wordpress Plugin XCloner 4.2.12 - Remote Code Execution (Authenticated) | 2021-07-01 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, Exploit-DB, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2020-35948 is a critical vulnerability (CVSS 9.9) in Xcloner, published January 1, 2021. Public exploit code exists. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 24.9%, the 97th percentile. No source names a fixed version.
References
wordfence.com/blog/2020/09/critical-vulnerabilities-patched-in-xcloner-backup-and-restore-plugin
wpscan.com/vulnerability/10412
packetstormsecurity.com/files/163336/WordPress-XCloner-4.2.12-Remote-Code-Execution.html
github.com/Hacker5preme/Exploits/tree/main/Wordpress/CVE-2020-35948
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-35948