CVE-2023-5359 | W3 Total Cache <= 2.7.5 - Sensitive Credentials Stored in Plaintext

The W3 Total Cache plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Sensitive Information Exposure in versions up to, and including, 2.7.5 via Google OAuth API secrets stored in plaintext in the publicly visible plugin source. This can allow unauthenticated attackers to impersonate W3 Total Cache and gain access to user account information in successful conditions. This would not impact the WordPress users site in any way.

Published: 2024-09-25 Last update: 2024-09-30 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2023-5359 is rated Moderate Risk (43.8/100): CVSS Low severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 2.44%). Mandatory action: Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-5359

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-04-05 3.20% 2.44% -0.76%
2 2026-02-13 2.44% 3.20% +0.75%
3 2025-11-21 2.44%

Full EPSS history (25 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-5359

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
3.7 3.1 LOW
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:L)
Some sensitive info could get out, but not a total data dump.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
2.2 1.4 [email protected]
7.5 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
3.9 3.6 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-5359

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-5359

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
boldgrid w3_total_cache < 2.7.6 cpe:2.3:a:boldgrid:w3_total_cache:*:*:*:*:*:wordpress:*:*

References for CVE-2023-5359

cvelogic Threat Intelligence