Wp Ultimate Csv Importer - Privilege Escalation (CVE-2023-4140)

Q: Am I affected by this vulnerability?

You are affected if your site runs Wp Ultimate Csv Importer. An attacker needs author or above, so open registration materially increases the risk.

Q: How do I fix it?

Update Wp Ultimate Csv Importer to the latest available version. Where the vendor has not yet published a fix, remove or disable the plugin until they do. Until you can update, Unauthorised administrator detection in Hack Halt ProSecure contains this class of attack at the request layer.

Q: What can an attacker actually do?

This is a Privilege Escalation flaw. An attacker who exploits it can raise a low-privilege account, or none at all, to administrator.

CVE-2023-4140

Vulnerability CVE-2023-4140 PLUGIN wp-ultimate-csv-importer MEDIUM

The WP Ultimate CSV Importer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation in versions up to, and including, 7.9.8 due to insufficient restriction on the 'get_header_values' function. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with minimal permissions such as an author, if the administrator previously grants access in the plugin settings, to modify their user role by supplying the 'wp_capabilities->cus1' parameter.

CVE-2023-4140

MEDIUM CVSS 6.6 Published 2023-08-04 Updated 2026-06-17

AI Risk Elevated (65/100) Active Exploit: No strong signal Published Exploit: No public exploit references Priority: P3 Priority

Severity Band MEDIUM

CVSS Vector CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected Components 1

Reference Links 3

AI Risk Engine Elevated (65/100)

Exploitability High

Active Exploitation No strong signal

Published Exploit Status No public exploit references

Threat Timeline

2023-08-04 CVE published and first recorded in the threat feed.
2026-06-17 Record updated with latest vulnerability metadata.
2026-04-09 AI technical context refreshed for mitigation and impact guidance.
Now Monitoring for follow-up changes, linked references, and new related CVEs.

AI Context

Machine-generated threat intelligence

AI Updated 175 days ago

AI enriched 175 days ago (2026-04-09 10:24 UTC)

Technical Summary

Potential Impact

Severity is MEDIUM (CVSS 6.6). Depending on deployment context, affected components may be exposed to unauthorized actions or data integrity risk.

Exploitability Assessment

Exploitability is assessed as High based on remote code execution potential.

Primary risk drivers: remote code execution potential

Mitigation Recommendations

Validate affected product versions, prioritize patching, and monitor references for vendor remediation guidance. If immediate patching is not possible, apply compensating controls and limit exposure of vulnerable surfaces.

Detection & Monitoring

Track authentication anomalies, unexpected file writes, and suspicious plugin API activity around affected components.

Business Impact Lens

Prioritize remediation where affected components process customer data, admin sessions, or Internet-exposed workflows.

Affected Products

Wp Ultimate Csv Importer PLUGIN · wp-ultimate-csv-importer Affected: <= 7.9.8 Fixed version not specified

References

What to do about this

Patch promptly The consequence is significant even where an attacker needs a foothold first.

Fix it

Update Wp Ultimate Csv Importer to the latest available version.

Where the vendor has not published a fix yet, disable the plugin until they do.

Cannot update today? Unauthorised administrator detection in Hack Halt ProSecure blocks this class of attack before WordPress processes the request.

Alert when a new administrator appears or a role is escalated. Creating a hidden admin is the most common persistence step after a WordPress compromise.

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Not sure if you are affected?

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Am I affected by this vulnerability?