SeoWordPress extension · Rankmath
CVE-2023-23888
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 · uneditedImproper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in Rank Math Rank Math SEO allows Path Traversal.This issue affects Rank Math SEO: from n/a through 1.0.107.2.
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 · moderate confidencePath traversal vulnerability in Rank Math SEO plugin allows attackers to access files outside the intended restricted directory. This could enable unauthorized file read operations on the affected WordPress installation.
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
SeoWordPress extension
< 1.0.107.3CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Locate Rank Math SEO plugin installationAccess your WordPress site via FTP or file manager and navigate to the wp-content/plugins directory. Look for a folder named 'seo-by-rank-math' or similar Rank Math related directories.Affected if The plugin folder exists on the server
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Determine installed versionOpen the main plugin file (typically rank-math.php or index.php inside the plugin folder) and locate the version string in the plugin header comment, or check a version.php file if present. Alternatively, log into WordPress admin and go to Plugins > Installed Plugins to view the version listed for Rank Math SEO.Affected if The version displayed is below 1.0.107.3
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Verify plugin is activeLog into WordPress admin and check the Plugins page, or query the wp_options table for the active_plugins option to confirm Rank Math SEO is enabled.Affected if The plugin shows as active or is present in the active plugins list
Your environment is affected if the Rank Math SEO plugin is installed, active, and the installed version is lower than 1.0.107.3, as this version range contains the path traversal vulnerability allowing unauthorized file access.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped1.0.107.3
Update to a patched version of Rank Math SEO after checking vendor advisories; implement input validation ensuring paths are canonicalized and constrained to allowed directories.
Rank Math SEO version 1.0.107.3
- 1. Backup your WordPress site before making any changes
- 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins in your WordPress admin dashboard
- 3. Find Rank Math SEO in the plugin list
- 4. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to update to the latest version (1.0.107.3 or later)
- 5. Alternatively, go to Dashboard > Updates and select Rank Math SEO to update
- 6. Verify the update was successful by checking the plugin version
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Seo
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,088.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-23888 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-23888 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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