CVE-2023-0074Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Contributor-level stored XSS via unescaped shortcode attributes

Published Jan 30, 2023 · Updated Mar 27, 2025

Stored cross-site scripting in Catch Square WP Social Widget before 2.2.4 allows remote authenticated users to run script in visitors' browsers. The wpsw shortcode outputs the facebook attribute in generated link markup without validation or escaping, so a quote can inject an event handler. Contributor-level permission to embed the shortcode and a visitor who views the resulting page or post are required; exploitation executes script in that visitor's browser context.

CVSS severity5.4
Medium
EPSS probability0.53%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Stored cross-site scripting in Catch Square WP Social Widget before 2.2.4 allows remote authenticated users to run script in visitors' browsers. The wpsw shortcode outputs the facebook attribute in generated link markup without validation or escaping, so a quote can inject an event handler. Contributor-level permission to embed the shortcode and a visitor who views the resulting page or post are required; exploitation executes script in that visitor's browser context.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-0074
Published
Jan 30, 2023
Updated
Mar 27, 2025
Vendor
Catch Square Pvt. Ltd.
Product
WP Social Widget
Classifications
CWE-79, T1059.007
Attack vector
network
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jan 30, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Mar 27, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=0 <2.2.4

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Catch Square Pvt. Ltd. · WP Social Widgetversion=0 <2.2.4

Published CVSS scores

5.4NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
5.4CISA-ADPCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

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

Public exploit references

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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