dbcve.org
Missing AuthorizationWeakness · CWE-862

CVE-2023-49850

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-09
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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
Missing Authorization vulnerability in Ashish Ajani WP Simple HTML Sitemap allows Exploiting Incorrectly Configured Access Control Security Levels.This issue affects WP Simple HTML Sitemap: from n/a through 2.7.

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 confidence

Missing authorization vulnerability in WP Simple HTML Sitemap plugin allows authenticated attackers to access functionality that should be restricted, due to incorrectly configured access control security levels. The vulnerability stems from the plugin failing to properly validate user capabilities before executing sensitive operations.

MitigationUpdate to the latest version of WP Simple HTML Sitemap (after 2.7) which should include proper authorization checks. Review all admin/sitemap generation functions to ensure capability checks (like current_user_can) are in place before performing privileged actions.

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

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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. Locate the WP Simple HTML Sitemap plugin files and version
    Access your WordPress site via FTP or file manager, navigate to /wp-content/plugins/ and locate the 'simple-html-sitemap' folder. Open the main plugin file (usually simple-html-sitemap.php) and look for the version declaration in the plugin header comment.
    Affected if The plugin is present and the version number declared is 2.7 or lower
  2. Verify the plugin is active on the site
    Log into WordPress admin panel, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins, and check if WP Simple HTML Sitemap is listed as Active.
    Affected if The plugin shows as Active and the version is 2.7 or lower
  3. Inspect plugin for missing capability checks
    Using a code editor or grep tool, search all PHP files in the plugin directory for patterns where sensitive operations (like saving settings, generating sitemaps, modifying options) are performed without first calling current_user_can() or a capability check function.
    Affected if You find PHP functions that perform privileged actions (admin settings, sitemap generation, option updates) without a preceding current_user_can() or similar authorization check
  4. Check AJAX endpoints for authorization gaps
    Search plugin files for add_action('wp_ajax_') calls and verify whether each callback function includes a capability verification step before executing its logic.
    Affected if AJAX handlers exist that process requests without verifying the user has appropriate permissions (like 'manage_options' or 'edit_posts')
  5. Review admin menu registrations for access control
    Examine how the plugin registers admin menus using add_menu_page or add_submenu_page and check if the 'capability' parameter in those calls is set to a restrictive enough level (such as 'manage_options') rather than a weaker capability like 'read'.
    Affected if Admin menu items are registered with overly permissive capability levels that allow lower-privileged authenticated users access to plugin administrative functions

Your environment is affected if the WP Simple HTML Sitemap plugin is installed, active, and running version 2.7 or lower, or if code inspection reveals missing current_user_can() checks before privileged operations.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update to the latest version of WP Simple HTML Sitemap (after 2.7) which should include proper authorization checks. Review all admin/sitemap generation functions to ensure capability checks (like current_user_can) are in place before performing privileged actions.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Update WP Simple HTML Sitemap to the latest version (version higher than 2.7)

  1. 1. Navigate to the WordPress admin dashboard
  2. 2. Go to Plugins > Installed Plugins
  3. 3. Locate WP Simple HTML Sitemap plugin
  4. 4. Check the current version number displayed under the plugin name
  5. 5. If the installed version is 2.7 or lower, update the plugin to the latest available version
  6. 6. After updating, verify the authorization controls are functioning correctly by testing access to sitemap-related functionality

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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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-2023-49850 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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