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Nex FormsWordPress extension · Basixonline

CVE-2023-0439

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-07-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 8.4.4 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
The NEX-Forms WordPress plugin before 8.4.4 does not escape its form name, which could lead to Stored Cross-Site Scripting issues. By default only SuperAdmins (in multisite) / admins (in single site) can create forms, however there is a settings allowing them to give lower roles access to such feature.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

The NEX-Forms WordPress plugin before version 8.4.4 fails to properly escape the form name parameter when rendering it, allowing stored XSS payloads to be injected. This is a stored XSS vulnerability where malicious JavaScript code embedded in the form name will execute when other users view or manage the forms.

MitigationUpdate NEX-Forms to version 8.4.4 or later. If immediate update is not possible, restrict the form creation capability setting to only trusted administrator-level users until the patch can be applied.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Nex FormsWordPress extension
Affected:< 8.4.4

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify NEX-Forms plugin is installed
    Log into WordPress admin and navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins. Look for 'NEX-Forms' in the plugin list. Alternatively, use WP-CLI: wp plugin list --name='nex-forms'
    Affected if The NEX-Forms plugin is installed and the version shown is below 8.4.4
  2. Check the installed plugin version number
    In the WordPress plugin list, click on the NEX-Forms plugin to view its details, or run: wp plugin get nex-forms --field=version
    Affected if Version number is less than 8.4.4 (for example, 8.4.3, 8.4.0, etc.)
  3. Inspect existing forms for suspicious content in form names
    Navigate to NEX-Forms in the admin panel and review each form's name. Look for unusual characters, HTML tags, or JavaScript-like code (such as <script, javascript:, onerror=, onload=) embedded in the form name field
    Affected if Any form name contains script tags, event handlers, or other JavaScript code patterns
  4. Check database for stored XSS payloads in form entries
    If you have database access, query the posts table for NEX-Forms entries: SELECT ID, post_title FROM wp_posts WHERE post_type='nex_forms' AND post_title LIKE '%<%' OR post_title LIKE '%javascript:%';
    Affected if Query returns form entries with HTML or script content in their titles

You are affected if the NEX-Forms plugin version is below 8.4.4 AND any form exists with malicious JavaScript code embedded in its name.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 8.4.4 or later
Fixed in 8.4.4
Interim mitigation

Update NEX-Forms to version 8.4.4 or later. If immediate update is not possible, restrict the form creation capability setting to only trusted administrator-level users until the patch can be applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

NEX-Forms WordPress plugin version 8.4.4

  1. 1. Back up your WordPress site database and files before making any changes.
  2. 2. Navigate to the WordPress admin dashboard.
  3. 3. Go to Plugins > Installed Plugins.
  4. 4. Locate the NEX-Forms plugin in the list.
  5. 5. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to update to version 8.4.4 or later.
  6. 6. Alternatively, download the latest version from WordPress.org or the vendor and upload it manually via Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin.
  7. 7. After updating, verify the plugin version shows 8.4.4 or higher under Plugins > Installed Plugins.
  8. 8. Test that forms can be created and saved without errors to confirm functionality is intact.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Nex Forms Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.

Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-0439 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data