CVE-2020-36172Network attack vector

XSS via unescaped post titles

Published Jan 6, 2021 · Updated Aug 4, 2024

Cross-site scripting in Advanced Custom Fields before 5.8.12 allows remote attackers to execute script via crafted post titles. Select2 dropdowns and Relationship fields render malicious HTML from post titles without escaping, including script tags. Execution requires a user to view an affected field; public sources do not identify how an unauthenticated attacker supplies the crafted title.

CVSS severity6.1
Medium
EPSS probability0.90%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Cross-site scripting in Advanced Custom Fields before 5.8.12 allows remote attackers to execute script via crafted post titles. Select2 dropdowns and Relationship fields render malicious HTML from post titles without escaping, including script tags. Execution requires a user to view an affected field; public sources do not identify how an unauthenticated attacker supplies the crafted title.

The record

CVE
CVE-2020-36172
Published
Jan 6, 2021
Updated
Aug 4, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-79, T1059.007
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jan 6, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 4, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

6.1NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
4.3NIST NVDAV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-79Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
T1059.007Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript/JScript

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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