CVE-2021-39201
Authenticated cross-site scripting (XSS) in WordPress editor
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- Low
- User interaction
- Required
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
Authenticated cross-site scripting (XSS) in WordPress editor
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
CVE-2021-39201- CVSS 3.1
- 7.6 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2021-25583
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
EUVD-2021-25583- CVSS 3.1
- 7.6 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-03
NVD
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
CVE-2021-39201- CVSS 3.1
- 7.6 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N - CVSS 3.1
- 5.4 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - CVSS 2.0
- 3.5 Low
AV:N/AC:M/Au:S/C:N/I:P/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
CVE-2021-39201- CVSS 3.1
- 5.4 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVDEBIAN-CVE-2021-39201
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
DEBIAN-CVE-2021-39201- CVSS 3.1
- 5.4 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVUBUNTU-CVE-2021-39201
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
UBUNTU-CVE-2021-39201- CVSS 3.1
- 7.6 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N - CVSS 3.1
- 5.4 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVBIT-wordpress-2021-39201 No score
Authenticated cross-site scripting (XSS) in WordPress editor
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
BIT-wordpress-2021-39201- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVBIT-wordpress-multisite-2021-39201 No score
Authenticated cross-site scripting (XSS) in WordPress editor
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. ### Impact The issue allows an authenticated but low-privileged user (like contributor/author) to execute XSS in the editor. This bypasses the restrictions imposed on users who do not have the permission to post unfiltered_html. ### Patches This has been patched in WordPress 5.8, and will be pushed to older versions via minor releases (automatic updates). It's strongly recommended that you keep auto-updates enabled to receive the fix. ### References https://wordpress.org/news/category/releases/ https://hackerone.com/reports/1142140 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in HackerOne
- Record
BIT-wordpress-multisite-2021-39201- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
wordpressBitnami |
5.0.0 up to 5.8.0 | 5.8.0 |
wordpress-multisiteBitnami |
5.0.0 up to 5.8.0 | 5.8.0 |
wordpressDebian:12 |
before 5.8.1+dfsg1-1 | 5.8.1+dfsg1-1 |
wordpressDebian:13 |
before 5.8.1+dfsg1-1 | 5.8.1+dfsg1-1 |
wordpressDebian:14 |
before 5.8.1+dfsg1-1 | 5.8.1+dfsg1-1 |
wordpressDebian:10 |
before 5.0.14+dfsg1-0+deb10u1, plus listed versions 5.0.10+dfsg1-0+deb10u15.0.11+dfsg1-0+deb10u15.0.12+dfsg1-0+deb10u15.0.4+dfsg1-15.0.4+dfsg1-1+deb10u15.0.4+dfsg1-1+deb10u2 |
5.0.14+dfsg1-0+deb10u1 |
wordpressDebian:11 |
before 5.7.3+dfsg1-0+deb11u1, plus listed versions 5.7.1+dfsg1-2 |
5.7.3+dfsg1-0+deb11u1 |
wordpressUbuntu:16.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 4.3+dfsg-14.3.1+dfsg-14.4+dfsg-14.4.1+dfsg-14.4.2+dfsg-14.4.2+dfsg-1ubuntu1 |
None known |
wordpressUbuntu:18.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 4.8.2+dfsg-24.8.3+dfsg-14.9.1+dfsg-14.9.2+dfsg-14.9.4+dfsg-14.9.5+dfsg1-1 |
None known |
wordpressUbuntu:20.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 5.2.2+dfsg1-15.2.4+dfsg1-15.3.2+dfsg1-15.3.2+dfsg1-1ubuntu1 |
None known |
Show 5 moreShow less
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
wordpressUbuntu:22.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 5.7.1+dfsg1-2ubuntu15.8.1+dfsg1-2ubuntu15.8.2+dfsg1-1ubuntu15.8.3+dfsg1-1ubuntu15.8.3+dfsg1-1ubuntu1.1 |
None known |
wordpressUbuntu:24.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 6.2+dfsg1-1ubuntu16.4.3+dfsg1-1ubuntu1 |
None known |
wordpressUbuntu:25.10 |
All versions, plus listed versions 6.7.2+dfsg1-1.1ubuntu1 |
None known |
wordpressUbuntu:26.10 |
All versions, plus listed versions 6.7.2+dfsg1-1.1ubuntu2 |
None known |
wordpressUbuntu:26.04:LTS |
All versions, plus listed versions 6.7.2+dfsg1-1.1ubuntu16.7.2+dfsg1-1.1ubuntu2 |
None known |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2021-39201 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 7.6) in Wordpress, published September 9, 2021. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 1.49%, the 74th percentile. Fixed in wordpress 5.8.0.