CVE-2009-2335

WordPress < 2.8.1 - Username Enumeration via Failed Login Behavior

Title source: llm
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

EIP tracks 3 public exploits for CVE-2009-2335. PoCs published by Core Security, Tiago Ferreira & Heyder Andrade, including Metasploit module auxiliary/scanner/http/wordpress_login_enum.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This advisory details multiple vulnerabilities in WordPress, including privilege escalation via unchecked access to plugin configuration pages and information disclosure. It provides technical analysis of the root cause and proof-of-concept URLs demonstrating the flaws.

Description

WordPress and WordPress MU before 2.8.1 exhibit different behavior for a failed login attempt depending on whether the user account exists, which allows remote attackers to enumerate valid usernames. NOTE: the vendor reportedly disputes the significance of this issue, indicating that the behavior exists for "user convenience."

Exploits (3)

exploitdb WRITEUP VERIFIED
by Core Security · textwebappsphp
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/9110

This advisory details multiple vulnerabilities in WordPress, including privilege escalation via unchecked access to plugin configuration pages and information disclosure. It provides technical analysis of the root cause and proof-of-concept URLs demonstrating the flaws.

Classification
Writeup 100%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass | Info Leak | Xss
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress 2.8 and previous, WordPress MU 2.7.1 and previous
Auth required
Prerequisites: Access to a WordPress instance with vulnerable version · Subscriber-level account or higher
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 18, 2026 Full analysis →
exploitdb WORKING POC
by Tiago Ferreira & Heyder Andrade · rubywebappsphp
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/17702

This Metasploit auxiliary module exploits CVE-2009-2335 to enumerate WordPress usernames and perform brute-force authentication attacks. It includes a bypass for the Block-Spam-By-Math-Reloaded plugin.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress (versions affected by CVE-2009-2335)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Access to the WordPress login page (wp-login.php)
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
metasploit WORKING POC
rubypoc
https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/auxiliary/scanner/http/wordpress_login_enum.rb

This Metasploit module performs WordPress user enumeration, validation, and brute-force authentication. It leverages WordPress-specific HTTP requests to check for valid usernames and attempt login with provided credentials.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Auth Bypass
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress (multiple versions, including those affected by CVE-2009-2335)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: WordPress installation with accessible login page · Network access to the target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →

References (11)

Core 11
Core References
Third Party Advisory vendor-advisory x_refsource_fedora
https://www.redhat.com/archives/fedora-package-announce/2009-August/msg00608.html
Third Party Advisory vendor-advisory x_refsource_fedora
https://www.redhat.com/archives/fedora-package-announce/2009-July/msg00676.html
Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry mailing-list x_refsource_bugtraq
http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/504795/100/0/threaded
Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry vdb-entry x_refsource_sectrack
http://securitytracker.com/id?1022528
Third Party Advisory vendor-advisory x_refsource_fedora
https://www.redhat.com/archives/fedora-package-announce/2009-July/msg00632.html
Patch, Vendor Advisory vdb-entry x_refsource_vupen
http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2009/1833
Third Party Advisory vendor-advisory x_refsource_fedora
https://www.redhat.com/archives/fedora-package-announce/2009-August/msg00597.html
Broken Link vdb-entry x_refsource_osvdb
http://www.osvdb.org/55713
Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry exploit x_refsource_exploit-db
http://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/9110
Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry vdb-entry x_refsource_bid
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/35581

Scores

EPSS 0.8500
EPSS Percentile 99.7%

Details

CWE
CWE-16
Status published
Products (2)
wordpress/wordpress < 2.8.1
wordpress/wordpress_mu < 2.8.1
Published Jul 10, 2009
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026