CVE-2024-8856 — Backup And Staging By Wp Time Capsule
CRITICALCVE-2024-8856 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.8) Unrestricted File Upload vulnerability in revmakx backup and staging by wp time capsule. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. No vendor fix is recorded yet; mitigation options are listed below.
The Backup and Staging by WP Time Capsule plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file uploads due to missing file type validation in the the UploadHandler.php file and no direct…
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2024-8856.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2024-8856 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). In the shaded patch-first corner (EPSS 50%+, CVSS 7.0+).
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 395,249 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the ≥ 90% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.
Description
The Backup and Staging by WP Time Capsule plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file uploads due to missing file type validation in the the UploadHandler.php file and no direct file access prevention in all versions up to, and including, 1.22.21. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to upload arbitrary files on the affected site's server which may make remote code execution possible.
Affected Products
backup and staging by wp time capsulerevmakxResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Backup and Staging by WP Time Capsule 1.22.21 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Upload
by Al Baradi Joy · Apr 6, 2025
Detection & mitigation playbook
Vendor / applianceDetect
Inventory every revmakx backup and staging by wp time capsule deployment and check each version against the affected-products list above.
Remediation status
No patch has shipped for CVE-2024-8856 yet — track the revmakx backup and staging by wp time capsule advisory for a fixed release and apply the workarounds below in the meantime.
Mitigate without a patch
Treat uploaded files as untrusted until proven otherwise: validate the actual content type rather than the supplied extension, store uploads outside the web root on a volume mounted without execute permission, and rename them to server-generated identifiers so an attacker cannot choose the path a request will later resolve. Alongside that, restrict the management interface to trusted networks and apply the vendor's recommended configuration mitigations.
How to detect CVE-2024-8856
A community-maintained Nuclei template exists for this CVE. You can scan for it directly:
nuclei -id cve-2024-8856 -u https://target- Template
- WP Time Capsule Plugin - Remote Code Execution
- Severity
- critical
- Impact
- Unauthenticated attackers can upload arbitrary PHP files to the server through missing file type validation, enabling remote code execution and complete WordPress site compromise.
- Remediation
- Update WP Time Capsule plugin to a version later than 1.22.21 that addresses the arbitrary file upload vulnerability and implements proper file type validation and direct file access prevention.
Template by ProjectDiscovery nuclei-templates (iamnoooob, rootxharsh, pdresearch), MIT licensed. View the full template. Scan only systems you are authorised to test.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2024-8856 being exploited in your environment?
Detect and block the exploit chain at execution, on systems you cannot patch yet.