CVE-2016-6897Wordpress CSRF
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the wp_ajax_update_plugin function in wp-admin/includes/ajax-actions.php in WordPress before 4.6 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of subscribers for /dev/random read operations by leveraging a late call to…
Published Jan 18, 2017 · Updated Aug 4, 2026 · Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2016-6897, UBUNTU-CVE-2016-6897, WORDFENCE-d6dfed14-bb6f-4418-bdd8-9c548e63dac0, d6dfed14-bb6f-4418-bdd8-9c548e63dac0
Key Facts
Routine patching- CVE-2016-6897 is a medium-severity vulnerability (CVSS 6.5 v3.1) affecting Wordpress.
- It is not listed in any known-exploited vulnerabilities catalog. Public exploit code is available.
- EPSS estimates a 29% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
- Fixed versions are available, including Wordpress 4.6, Wordpress 4.6.1+dfsg-1, Wordpress 4.5.5.
- Brandefense priority: routine patching, as no exploitation is known and its severity is moderate or low.
Scores
CVSS v3.1
6.5
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
EPSS (30-day exploit likelihood)
29%
Higher than 98.1% of all scored CVEs
Exploit maturity
Proof of concept
ATLAS score
36/100
Publication score, see How it works
Exploitation Verdict
KEV listed
Not listed
Federal due date
None
No federal due date
Ransomware use
Not reported
Attributed actors
None named
Exploit & Defence Guidance
Exploit maturity
Proof of concept
Public exploit code
1
Proof-of-concept links
In-the-wild evidence
0
Reports of active use
Advisories And Exploit References
- advisoryhttps://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2016-6897
- advisoryhttps://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2016-6897
- advisoryhttps://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2016-6897
- advisoryhttp://seclists.org/oss-sec/2016/q3/347
- advisoryhttps://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/d6dfed14-bb6f-4418-bdd8-9c548e63dac0?source=api-prod
- advisoryhttps://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/d6dfed14-bb6f-4418-bdd8-9c548e63dac0?source=api-scan
Description
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the wp_ajax_update_plugin function in wp-admin/includes/ajax-actions.php in WordPress before 4.6 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of subscribers for /dev/random read operations by leveraging a late call to the check_ajax_referer function, a related issue to CVE-2016-6896.
Affected Products
14 affected entries in total| Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| WordpressWordpress | See advisory | 4.5.5 |
Patched Releases
Wordpress
4.6, 4.6.1+dfsg-1, 4.5.5
Timeline
Publicly disclosed
Jan 18, 2017
Last updated
Aug 4, 2026
Weakness Type
- CWE-352 Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)
References
- advisorysecurity-tracker.debian.org · CVE-2016-6897
- advisoryubuntu.com · CVE-2016-6897
- advisorycve.org · CVERecord
- advisoryseclists.org · 347
- advisorywordfence.com · d6dfed14-bb6f-4418-bdd8-9c548e63dac0
FAQ
Common Questions.
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the wp_ajax_update_plugin function in wp-admin/includes/ajax-actions.php in WordPress before 4.6 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of subscribers for /dev/random read operations by leveraging a late call to the check_ajax_referer function, a related…
Affected: Wordpress. The full list is in the CVE brief.
It is not listed in any known-exploited vulnerabilities catalog.
No, it is not currently listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
Public exploit code is available.
Fixed versions are available, including Wordpress 4.6, Wordpress 4.6.1+dfsg-1, Wordpress 4.5.5.
Brandefense priority: routine patching, as no exploitation is known and its severity is moderate or low.
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