# CVE-2023-1874: WP Data Access <= 5.3.7 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Privilege Escalation

> Authenticated subscribers can escalate privileges to higher roles by exploiting missing authorization checks in the WP Data Access plugin when role management is enabled.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 12 Apr 2023
- **Updated:** 8 Apr 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-6f4x-x656-q884

## What is CVE-2023-1874?

CVE-2023-1874 is a high-severity vulnerability in peterschulznl WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Charts, Maps & Dashboards, published on 12 Apr 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The WP Data Access plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to privilege escalation in versions up to, and including, 5.3.7. This is due to a lack of authorization checks on the multiple_roles_update function. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with minimal permissions such as a subscriber, to modify their user role by supplying the 'wpda_role[]' parameter during a profile update. This requires the 'Enable role management' setting to be enabled for the site.

Weakness: CWE-266 (Incorrect Privilege Assignment)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-1874?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Wpdataaccess Wp Data Access.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-1874?

No fix has been published for CVE-2023-1874 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2023-1874 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-1874 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code:

- https://github.com/thomas-osgood/cve-2023-1874 (github_poc): https://github.com/thomas-osgood/cve-2023-1874

## Other vulnerabilities in peterschulznl WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Charts, Maps & Dashboards

- [CVE-2021-24866](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-24866/): WP Data Access < 5.0.0 - Admin+ SQL Injection (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2024-43295](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-43295/): WordPress WP Data Access plugin <= 5.5.7 - Cross Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability (medium 4.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-1874 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-1874 is a high-severity vulnerability in peterschulznl WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Charts, Maps & Dashboards, published on 12 Apr 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-1874 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: peterschulznl WP Data Access – App Builder for Tables, Forms, Charts, Maps & Dashboards. 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-2023-1874/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-1874/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-1874
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-1874
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-1874

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-1874/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.