# CVE-2022-0992: SiteGround Security <= 1.2.5 - Authentication Bypass via 2FA Setup

> Unauthenticated attackers can bypass 2FA setup to log in as administrators, leading to full site compromise.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 19 Apr 2022
- **Updated:** 8 Apr 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-5mrq-972x-qwr6

## What is CVE-2022-0992?

CVE-2022-0992 is a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in siteground Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin, published on 19 Apr 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The SiteGround Security plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authentication bypass that allows unauthenticated users to log in as administrative users due to missing identity verification on initial 2FA set-up that allows unauthenticated and unauthorized users to configure 2FA for pending accounts. Upon successful configuration, the attacker is logged in as that user without access to a username/password pair which is the expected first form of authentication. This affects versions up to, and including, 1.2.5.

Weakness: CWE-306 (Missing Authentication for Critical Functionality), CWE-288 (Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-0992?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Siteground Security Optimizer.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-0992?

No fix has been published for CVE-2022-0992 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2022-0992 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2022-0992 exists.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2022-0992 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-0992 is a critical authentication bypass vulnerability in siteground Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin, published on 19 Apr 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2022-0992 exists.

Affected product: siteground Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0992/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0992/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-0992
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-0992
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-0992

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0992/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.