dbcve.org
Page BuilderWordPress extension · Wpbakery

CVE-2024-1842

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-05-02
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.6 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 wpbakery plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via the Custom Heading tag attribute in all versions up to, and including, 7.5 due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with contributor access or higher, to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user accesses an injected page.

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 WPBakery page builder plugin for WordPress contains a stored XSS vulnerability in versions up to 7.5. The Custom Heading element fails to properly sanitize input and escape output, allowing authenticated attackers with contributor-level access or higher to inject malicious JavaScript via the tag attribute that persists on affected pages.

MitigationUpdate WPBakery plugin to the latest version which includes proper input sanitization and output escaping for the Custom Heading tag attribute. Alternatively, implement custom sanitization functions and output escaping (esc_html/esc_attr) when rendering heading tags.

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
Page BuilderWordPress extension
Affected:< 7.6

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 WPBakery Page Builder is installed
    Check the WordPress plugins admin page or inspect the plugin files in /wp-content/plugins/js_composer to confirm the plugin is present
    Affected if The plugin is installed and the version cannot be determined or is below 7.6
  2. Determine the installed WPBakery version
    Look up the version number in the plugin header (typically in the main PHP file or readme.txt) or check the WordPress plugins admin panel
    Affected if The installed version is below 7.6 (versions up to and including 7.5 are affected)
  3. Identify pages using the Custom Heading element
    Search the WordPress database (wp_postmeta table) for post meta containing 'vc_custom_heading' or review pages edited with WPBakery that include the Custom Heading element
    Affected if Any pages or posts contain the Custom Heading element
  4. Inspect the tag attribute in Custom Heading elements
    Examine the saved post meta or exported content for the 'tag' parameter value in Custom Heading elements - look for unescaped HTML or JavaScript in this attribute
    Affected if The tag attribute contains unsanitized user input that could include HTML or script tags (e.g., <script> or event handlers)

You are affected if WPBakery Page Builder version is below 7.6 AND your site allows contributor-level or higher users to create or edit content using the Custom Heading element.

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 7.6 or later
Fixed in 7.6
Interim mitigation

Update WPBakery plugin to the latest version which includes proper input sanitization and output escaping for the Custom Heading tag attribute. Alternatively, implement custom sanitization functions and output escaping (esc_html/esc_attr) when rendering heading tags.

Recommended fix High confidence

Version 7.6 or later

  1. 1. Log in to the WordPress admin dashboard
  2. 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
  3. 3. Locate WPBakery Page Builder (Visual Composer) in the plugin list
  4. 4. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to upgrade to version 7.6 or later
  5. 5. Alternatively, download the latest version from wpbakery.com or WordPress plugin repository and upload via Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin
  6. 6. After updating, verify the plugin version shows 7.6 or higher under Plugins > Installed Plugins

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

Fix this in Page Builder Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

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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-2024-1842 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