CVE-2020-28039

CRITICALNVD 9.19.1—
EchelonGraph scoreMEDIUM confidence

Score 9.1 from GitHub Security Advisory (severity: CRITICAL) published 2022-05-24. NVD baseline CVSS 9.1; sources differ by 0.0.

Triggered by: GitHub Security Advisory CVSS
Sources: epss, ghsa, nvd
9.1EG
EchelonGraph verdictPlan a fixSerious severity, but no confirmed exploitation yet.
  • High severity, but no confirmed exploitation yet
CISA-KEV: Not listedEPSS PROB: 4%CVSS: 9.1Exploit: None knownExposed: 0

No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.

is_protected_meta in wp-includes/meta.php in WordPress before 5.5.2 allows arbitrary file deletion because it does not properly determine whether a meta key is considered protected.

CVSS v3
9.1
EG Score
9.1(medium)
EG Risk
47(Track)
EG Risk 47/100SSVC: Track

EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).

How it’s computed
Severity91% × 45%
Exploitation4% × 40%
Automatability30% × 15%
Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence.
EPSS PROB
4%
EPSS %ILE
90%
KEV
Not listed

Published

November 2, 2020

Last Modified

November 21, 2024

Advisory Details (7)

Auto-updated Jul 22, 2026
Patch available. Sources: github_commit.
generic Patch Available

[SECURITY] [DLA 2429-1] wordpress security update

https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/11/msg00004.html
github_commit

commit d5ddd6d4be1b (WordPress/wordpress-develop)

Fix landed in WordPress/wordpress-develop commit d5ddd6d4be1b — awaiting tagged release

https://github.com/WordPress/wordpress-develop/commit/d5ddd6d4be1bc9fd16b7796842e6fb26315705ad
generic

[SECURITY] [DSA 4784-1] wordpress security update

https://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4784
generic

WordPress 5.5.2 Security and Maintenance Release – WordPress News

https://wordpress.org/news/2020/10/wordpress-5-5-2-security-and-maintenance-release/
generic

[SECURITY] Fedora 33 Update: wordpress-5.5.3-1.fc33 - package-announce - Fedora mailing-lists

https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/VUXVUAKL2HL4QYJEPHBNVQQWRMFMII2Y/
generic

[SECURITY] Fedora 31 Update: wordpress-5.5.3-1.fc31 - package-announce - Fedora mailing-lists

https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/VAVVYJKA2I6CRQUINECDPBGWMQDEG244/
generic

[SECURITY] Fedora 32 Update: wordpress-5.5.3-1.fc32 - package-announce - Fedora mailing-lists

https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/CHHVNK2WYAM3ZTCXTFSEIT56IKLVJHU3/

Affected Packages

(6 across 6 ecosystems)
Debian:10(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFixed inDependents
wordpress5.0.10+dfsg1-0+deb10u1, 5.0.4+dfsg1-1, 5.0.4+dfsg1-1+deb10u1, 5.0.4+dfsg1-1+deb10u25.0.11+dfsg1-0+deb10u1—
Debian:11(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFixed inDependents
wordpress—5.5.3+dfsg1-1—
Debian:12(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFixed inDependents
wordpress—5.5.3+dfsg1-1—
Debian:13(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFixed inDependents
wordpress—5.5.3+dfsg1-1—
Debian:14(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFixed inDependents
wordpress—5.5.3+dfsg1-1—
Debian:9(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFixed inDependents
wordpress4.7.18+dfsg-1+deb9u1 ... 4.7.5+dfsg-2+deb9u6 (10 versions)4.7.19+dfsg-1+deb9u1—

Data Freshness Timeline

(refreshed 8× in last 7d / 29× in last 30d)

Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.

Showing the most recent 100 of 114 total refreshes for this CVE.

  1. 2026-08-20 22:52 UTCEPSS rescore
  2. 2026-08-19 17:00 UTCEPSS rescore
  3. 2026-08-18 13:44 UTCEPSS rescore
  4. 2026-08-17 13:43 UTCEPSS rescore
  5. 2026-08-16 14:52 UTCEPSS rescore
  6. 2026-08-16 02:11 UTCEPSS rescore
  7. 2026-08-15 02:30 UTCOSV refresh
  8. 2026-08-15 01:26 UTCEPSS rescore
  9. 2026-08-13 21:57 UTCEPSS rescore
  10. 2026-08-12 13:47 UTCEPSS rescore
  11. 2026-08-09 13:43 UTCEPSS rescore
  12. 2026-08-08 16:33 UTCEPSS rescore
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  17. 2026-08-02 02:23 UTCEPSS rescore
  18. 2026-08-01 04:12 UTCEPSS rescore
  19. 2026-07-30 16:25 UTCEPSS rescore
  20. 2026-07-30 14:44 UTCOSV refresh
  21. 2026-07-30 01:27 UTCEPSS rescore
  22. 2026-07-28 15:33 UTCEPSS rescore
  23. 2026-07-26 14:51 UTCEPSS rescore
  24. 2026-07-25 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
  25. 2026-07-24 14:14 UTCEPSS rescore
Show 75 more
  1. 2026-07-23 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
  2. 2026-07-23 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
  3. 2026-07-23 01:52 UTCEG score recompute
  4. 2026-07-22 22:38 UTCEG score recompute
  5. 2026-07-22 14:05 UTCEPSS rescore
  6. 2026-07-21 15:22 UTCEPSS rescore
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  8. 2026-07-20 17:04 UTCEPSS rescore
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  10. 2026-07-19 14:28 UTCEPSS rescore
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  12. 2026-07-19 02:26 UTCEPSS rescore
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  14. 2026-07-16 16:59 UTCEPSS rescore
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  17. 2026-07-15 01:57 UTCEPSS rescore
  18. 2026-07-13 22:27 UTCEPSS rescore
  19. 2026-07-13 22:27 UTCEPSS rescore
  20. 2026-07-13 00:07 UTCOSV refresh
  21. 2026-07-12 05:44 UTCEPSS rescore
  22. 2026-07-11 08:25 UTCEPSS rescore
  23. 2026-07-11 08:25 UTCEPSS rescore
  24. 2026-07-09 19:07 UTCEPSS rescore
  25. 2026-07-08 15:12 UTCEPSS rescore
  26. 2026-07-07 13:43 UTCEPSS rescore
  27. 2026-07-06 16:25 UTCEPSS rescore
  28. 2026-07-06 16:25 UTCEPSS rescore
  29. 2026-07-06 02:21 UTCEPSS rescore
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  31. 2026-07-04 06:29 UTCEPSS rescore
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  33. 2026-06-30 23:20 UTCEPSS rescore
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  35. 2026-06-28 04:54 UTCEPSS rescore
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  37. 2026-06-27 03:06 UTCEPSS rescore
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  39. 2026-06-25 13:48 UTCEPSS rescore
  40. 2026-06-24 14:03 UTCEPSS rescore
  41. 2026-06-24 14:03 UTCEPSS rescore
  42. 2026-06-24 09:30 UTCOSV refresh
  43. 2026-06-23 21:31 UTCEPSS rescore
  44. 2026-06-23 21:31 UTCEPSS rescore
  45. 2026-06-21 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
  46. 2026-06-21 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
  47. 2026-06-21 01:57 UTCEPSS rescore
  48. 2026-06-19 19:24 UTCEPSS rescore
  49. 2026-06-19 19:23 UTCEPSS rescore
  50. 2026-06-18 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
  51. 2026-06-18 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
  52. 2026-06-17 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
  53. 2026-06-16 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
  54. 2026-06-15 17:46 UTCEPSS rescore
  55. 2026-06-14 23:15 UTCEPSS rescore
  56. 2026-06-13 22:58 UTCEPSS rescore
  57. 2026-06-12 23:10 UTCEPSS rescore
  58. 2026-06-11 13:58 UTCEPSS rescore
  59. 2026-06-10 22:16 UTCEPSS rescore
  60. 2026-06-10 13:20 UTCEPSS rescore
  61. 2026-06-08 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
  62. 2026-06-07 15:23 UTCEPSS rescore
  63. 2026-06-07 15:23 UTCEPSS rescore
  64. 2026-06-07 15:23 UTCEPSS rescore
  65. 2026-06-07 14:00 UTCOSV refresh
  66. 2026-06-06 13:46 UTCEPSS rescore
  67. 2026-06-06 13:45 UTCEPSS rescore
  68. 2026-06-05 22:45 UTCEPSS rescore
  69. 2026-06-05 22:45 UTCEPSS rescore
  70. 2026-06-05 06:08 UTCEPSS rescore
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  72. 2026-06-04 13:10 UTCEPSS rescore
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  74. 2026-06-02 20:11 UTCEPSS rescore
  75. 2026-06-02 20:11 UTCEPSS rescore

Frequently asked(5)

What is CVE-2020-28039?
CVE-2020-28039 is a critical vulnerability published on November 2, 2020. isprotectedmeta in wp-includes/meta.php in WordPress before 5.5.2 allows arbitrary file deletion because it does not properly determine whether a meta key is considered protected.
When was CVE-2020-28039 disclosed?
CVE-2020-28039 was first published in the National Vulnerability Database on November 2, 2020, with the most recent update on November 21, 2024. EchelonGraph re-ingests CVE updates from NVD on a 2-hour cycle, so this page reflects the latest published state.
Is CVE-2020-28039 actively exploited?
CVE-2020-28039 is not currently on CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. FIRST EPSS estimates a 4% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, which ranks it in the top 10.0% of all scored CVEs.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-28039?
CVE-2020-28039 has a CVSS v3 base score of 9.1 (NVD).
How do I remediate CVE-2020-28039?
Patch to the fixed version published by the affected vendor. Where vendor advisories exist for CVE-2020-28039, EchelonGraph cross-links them in the Vendor Advisories panel below — those typically contain the canonical remediation steps, fixed version numbers, and any vendor-specific mitigations.

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