Security Resilience

CVE-2023-0631

SQLi in Strangerstudios Paid Memberships Pro ≤ 2.9.12

Public PoCHigh EPSSSQLi
Published
20 March 2023
Modified
26 February 2025
CVSS Score v3.1 8.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.60 99.1th percentile
Risk Priority 90 floored blend · peak EPSS

CVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.

Summary

CVE-2023-0631 is a high-severity SQL Injection (CWE-89) vulnerability in Strangerstudios Paid Memberships Pro. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Protocol or Service Impersonation (T1001.003); ranked in the top 0.9% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

The vulnerability CVE-2023-0631 is an SQL injection issue tracked as CWE-89 in the Paid Memberships Pro WordPress plugin prior to version 2.9.12. The root cause is insufficient protection that allows shortcodes to concatenate user-controlled attributes directly into SQL queries.

Authenticated subscribers can exploit the flaw over the network with low complexity and no user interaction required, enabling them to read, modify, or delete arbitrary database contents and achieve complete compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

References published by WPScan describe the affected shortcode paths and indicate that the issue is resolved by upgrading to version 2.9.12 or later.

EPSS for the CVE rose from lower values to a peak of 0.8013 on 2026-02-03 before receding to the current score of 0.5968, indicating post-disclosure exploitation interest that warrants renewed attention.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A05:2025 Injection

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

The Paid Memberships Pro WordPress plugin before 2.9.12 does not prevent subscribers from rendering shortcodes that concatenate attributes directly into an SQL query.

CWE(s)
CWE-89

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1001.003 Protocol or Service Impersonation Command And Control
Adversaries may impersonate legitimate protocols or web service traffic to disguise command and control activity and thwart analysis efforts.
attack.mitre.org →
T1003 OS Credential Dumping Credential Access
Adversaries may attempt to dump credentials to obtain account login and credential material, normally in the form of a hash or a clear text password.
attack.mitre.org →
T1003.001 LSASS Memory Credential Access
Adversaries may attempt to access credential material stored in the process memory of the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS).
attack.mitre.org →
T1003.002 Security Account Manager Credential Access
Adversaries may attempt to extract credential material from the Security Account Manager (SAM) database either through in-memory techniques or through the Windows Registry where the SAM database is stored.
attack.mitre.org →
T1003.003 NTDS Credential Access
Adversaries may attempt to access or create a copy of the Active Directory domain database in order to steal credential information, as well as obtain other information about domain members such as devices, users, and access rights.
attack.mitre.org →
T1005 Data from Local System Collection
Adversaries may search local system sources, such as file systems, configuration files, local databases, virtual machine files, or process memory, to find files of interest and sensitive data prior to Exfiltration.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-23488Same product: Strangerstudios Paid Memberships Pro
CVE-2021-25114Same product: Strangerstudios Paid Memberships Pro
CVE-2024-37486Same product: Strangerstudios Paid Memberships Pro
CVE-2024-0470Shared CWE-89
CVE-2023-25047Shared CWE-89
CVE-2023-4037Shared CWE-89
CVE-2024-4808Shared CWE-89
CVE-2023-4443Shared CWE-89
CVE-2024-9091Shared CWE-89
CVE-2023-37270Shared CWE-89

Affected Assets

strangerstudios
paid memberships pro
≤ 2.9.12

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V6.2.5

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

CA-8 Penetration Testing
addresses: CWE-89

Penetration testing uses SQL injection payloads against database interfaces, identifying and supporting fixes for SQL injection weaknesses.

SI-10 Information Input Validation
addresses: CWE-89

Validates query inputs to prevent SQL syntax or command manipulation.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
blocks

Secure SDLC practices directly target injection flaws during coding and review so largely prevent CWE-89 introduction, yet the single broad outcome leaves residual risk from incomplete neutralization techniques or missed edge cases.

PR.AT-02 partial match
blocks

Training raises developer awareness of SQLi risks and can reduce introduction likelihood (partial) but removes none of the actual coding flaw's risk by itself since technical neutralization is still required.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

A.5.14 Information transfer partial match
removes
A.5.15 Access control partial match
removes
A.5.16 Identity management partial match
removes
A.5.17 Authentication information partial match
removes
A.5.18 Access rights partial match
removes
A.5.6 Contact with special interest groups partial match
blocks

A.5.6 only improves knowledge flow, awareness of threats/patches and access to specialist advice; it does not stop SQL injection from being exploitable in code that still contains the flaw.

References