Advanced Custom FieldsWordPress extension · Wpengine
CVE-2024-45429
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 · uneditedCross-site scripting vulnerability exists in Advanced Custom Fields versions 6.3.5 and earlier and Advanced Custom Fields Pro versions 6.3.5 and earlier. If an attacker with the 'capability' setting privilege which is set in the product settings stores an arbitrary script in the field label, the script may be executed on the web browser of the logged-in user with the same privilege as the attacker's.
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 confidenceStored XSS vulnerability in Advanced Custom Fields (free and Pro) versions 6.3.5 and earlier allows authenticated users with the 'capability' setting privilege to inject arbitrary JavaScript into field labels. When other users with the same privilege level access the fields admin interface, the malicious script executes in their browsers.
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
Advanced Custom FieldsWordPress extension
<= 6.3.5CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed ACF versionCheck the Advanced Custom Fields version in your WordPress installation (typically found in the plugin header or admin dashboard under Plugins)Affected if The installed version is 6.3.5 or earlier
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Verify user capability settingsNavigate to ACF > Field Groups > Screen Options or the capability setting configuration, and review which user roles have permission to edit field groups and field labelsAffected if Users with lower privilege levels (such as editors or authors) are granted capability permissions to manage ACF fields
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Inspect field labels for malicious contentAccess ACF > Field Groups and examine each field group's field labels. Look for unexpected HTML script tags, JavaScript event handlers (onerror, onload, onclick), or unusual encoded characters in label namesAffected if Any field label contains script tags, javascript: URIs, or suspicious event handlers like onerror or onload
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Check for recent field modificationsReview field group edit history or audit logs for unexpected changes to field labels, particularly from users who should not have elevated permissionsAffected if Field labels were modified by untrusted users or contain injected content you did not create
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Test XSS execution contextUsing a browser, log in as a different user with the same capability level and navigate to the ACF Field Groups admin page. Observe if any scripts execute or unexpected behavior occurs when viewing the field labelsAffected if JavaScript executes or anomalous behavior occurs when viewing the fields admin interface
You are affected if ACF version is 6.3.5 or earlier AND untrusted users have capability permissions to edit field labels, or if malicious scripts are already present in field label configurations.
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 · scopedUpdate Advanced Custom Fields to version 6.3.6 or later. Review user roles and the 'capability' setting to ensure only trusted users have administrative field management permissions.
Advanced Custom Fields 6.3.6 or later (or corresponding Pro version)
- 1. Log in to the WordPress admin dashboard
- 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
- 3. Locate Advanced Custom Fields (or Advanced Custom Fields Pro)
- 4. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to update to the latest version
- 5. Alternatively, download the latest version from wordpress.org or advancedcustomfields.com and upload via Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin
- 6. After update, verify the plugin version is 6.3.6 or higher
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Advanced Custom Fields
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,376.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2024-45429 — 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-2024-45429 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