How severe is CVE-2022-21662?

CVE-2022-21662 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.0, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with high attack complexity, requires low privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2022-21662 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 63% (99th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2022-21662?

CVE-2022-21662 primarily affects Wordpress. In total, 4 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2022-21662?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2022-21662 published?

CVE-2022-21662 was published on 2022-01-06 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2022-21662

CVE-2022-21662 is a high-severity vulnerability in Wordpress with a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.0. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score of 63% places it in the 99th percentile, indicating an elevated likelihood of exploitation. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-79.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 8.0)
CVSS v2: 3.5
EPSS exploit prediction: 63% (99th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-79
Affected product: Wordpress
Published: 2022-01-06
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MariaDB database. Low-privileged authenticated users (like author) in WordPress core are able to execute JavaScript/perform stored XSS attack, which can affect high-privileged users. This has been patched in WordPress version 5.8.3. Older affected versions are also fixed via security release, that go back till 3.7.37. We strongly recommend that you keep auto-updates enabled. There are no known workarounds for this issue.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2022-21662?: WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MariaDB database. Low-privileged authenticated users (like author) in WordPress core are able to execute JavaScript/perform stored XSS attack, which can affect high-privileged users. This has been patched in WordPress version 5.8.3. Older affected versions are also fixed via security release, that go back till 3.7.37. We strongly recommend that you keep auto-updates enabled. There are no known workarounds for this issue.
How severe is CVE-2022-21662?: CVE-2022-21662 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.0, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with high attack complexity, requires low privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2022-21662 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 63% (99th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2022-21662?: CVE-2022-21662 primarily affects Wordpress. In total, 4 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2022-21662?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2022-21662 published?: CVE-2022-21662 was published on 2022-01-06 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (4)

cpe:2.3:a:wordpress:wordpress:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:11.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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CVE-2011-3125 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Unspecified vulnerability in WordPress 3.1 before 3.1.3 and 3.2 before Beta 2 has unknown impact and attack vectors…
CVE-2011-3122 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Unspecified vulnerability in WordPress 3.1 before 3.1.3 and 3.2 before Beta 2 has unknown impact and attack vectors…
CVE-2009-2853 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Wordpress before 2.8.3 allows remote attackers to gain privileges via a direct request to (1) admin-footer.php, (2)…
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Threat intelligence

Threat-intel indicators referencing this CVE:

64.202.190.35 (ipv4-addr)