User Meta – User Profile Builder and User management plugin <= 3.1.2 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Arbitrary File Deletion
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Unpatched
- Affected Plugin
- User Meta – User Profile Builder and User management plugin
- Affected Version
<= 3.1.2- CVSS
- 8.0High
- Weakness type
- CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
- CVE
CVE-2025-9693
At a glance
CVE-2025-9693 is a high-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the User Meta WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 3.1.2. It carries a CVSS score of 8.0 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity, availability impact). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Subscriber level or above. No fixed release has been reported yet; treat installations running this software as exposed. Disclosed September 2025, reported by Kishan Vyas.
Vulnerability Overview
The User Meta – User Profile Builder and User management plugin plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion due to insufficient file path validation in the postInsertUserProcess function in all versions up to, and including, 3.1.2. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level access and above, to delete arbitrary files on the server, which can easily lead to remote code execution when the right file is deleted (such as wp-config.php).
Technical Analysis
The vector marks this flaw as remotely reachable over the network, with low attack complexity — no special timing or configuration is needed. A successful exploit has high impact on confidentiality, integrity, availability — full site compromise territory.
CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Reaching this weakness in User Meta <= 3.1.2 takes an account at Subscriber level or above. Path traversal happens when user-controlled text is used to build a filesystem path without being constrained to an intended directory, so sequences like ../ walk the resolved path somewhere else.
Depending on the operation, it means reading files outside the intended folder — wp-config.php being the usual target — or writing to and deleting paths the web server can touch. No fixed build of this plugin is recorded for User Meta yet, so installs running <= 3.1.2 stay exposed until the vendor ships one.
Remediation
No known patch available. Please review the vulnerability's details in depth and employ mitigations based on your organization's risk tolerance. It may be best to uninstall the affected software and find a replacement.
How does WordSec protect against this?
An attacker needs Subscriber access first, so the firewall sees the attempt as traffic from a logged-in account: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. No patched version is recorded yet, which is the case where a filtering layer matters most, because there is nothing to update to.
- Firewall
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Same weakness class
Other vulnerabilities in User Meta – User Profile Builder and User management plugin
- 6.5CVE-2024-9262: User Meta IDOR to Sensitive Information Exposure
CVE-2024-9262 - 6.5User Meta Arbitrary File Upload
- 6.1CVE-2025-47611: User Meta <= 3.1.2 Reflected Cross-Site Scripting
CVE-2025-47611 - 5.5CVE-2022-0376: User Meta <= 2.4.2 Cross-Site Scripting
CVE-2022-0376 - 5.3CVE-2024-33575: User Meta <= 3.0 Sensitive Information Exposure
CVE-2024-33575
Vulnerability data © Defiant, Inc., provided under the Wordfence Intelligence T&C