CVE-2020-25213

CRITICAL KEV NUCLEI

WordPress File Manager Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution

Title source: metasploit
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

CVE-2020-25213 is actively exploited and listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added November 3, 2021. EIP tracks 13 public exploits from researchers including BLY, Mansoor R, mansoorr123, including a Metasploit module exploits/multi/http/wp_file_manager_rce. A Nuclei detection template is also available.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This exploit targets an unauthenticated arbitrary file upload vulnerability in WP File Manager plugin versions 6.0-6.9, allowing remote code execution via a malicious PHP shell upload. The PoC uploads a shell.php file and executes arbitrary commands through HTTP requests.

Description

The File Manager (wp-file-manager) plugin before 6.9 for WordPress allows remote attackers to upload and execute arbitrary PHP code because it renames an unsafe example elFinder connector file to have the .php extension. This, for example, allows attackers to run the elFinder upload (or mkfile and put) command to write PHP code into the wp-content/plugins/wp-file-manager/lib/files/ directory. This was exploited in the wild in August and September 2020.

Exploits (13)

exploitdb WORKING POC VERIFIED
by BLY · pythonwebappsphp
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/51224

This exploit targets an unauthenticated arbitrary file upload vulnerability in WP File Manager plugin versions 6.0-6.9, allowing remote code execution via a malicious PHP shell upload. The PoC uploads a shell.php file and executes arbitrary commands through HTTP requests.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WP File Manager plugin 6.0-6.9
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target must have WP File Manager plugin version 6.0-6.9 installed · Network access to the target WordPress site
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
exploitdb WORKING POC
by Mansoor R · bashwebappsphp
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/49178

This is a functional exploit for CVE-2020-25213, targeting an unauthenticated arbitrary file upload vulnerability in WordPress Plugin WP-FileManager versions 6.0 to 6.8. It leverages the exposed connector.minimal.php endpoint to upload files, leading to remote code execution.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress Plugin WP-FileManager 6.0 to 6.8
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target running vulnerable WP-FileManager plugin · Access to the connector.minimal.php endpoint
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 58 stars
by mansoorr123 · remote
https://github.com/mansoorr123/wp-file-manager-CVE-2020-25213

This repository contains a functional exploit for CVE-2020-25213, an unauthenticated arbitrary file upload vulnerability in the WP File Manager WordPress plugin (versions < 6.9). The exploit script checks for the vulnerable endpoint and allows uploading a local file to achieve remote code execution.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WP File Manager WordPress plugin < 6.9
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target running vulnerable WP File Manager plugin · Access to the plugin's connector.minimal.php endpoint
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 6 stars
by BLY-Coder · remote
https://github.com/BLY-Coder/Python-exploit-CVE-2020-25213

This is a functional Python exploit for CVE-2020-25213, targeting an unauthenticated arbitrary file upload vulnerability in the WordPress File Manager plugin (versions 6.0-6.9). It uploads a PHP shell via the elFinder connector and executes arbitrary commands.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress File Manager plugin 6.0-6.9
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target must have the vulnerable File Manager plugin installed and accessible
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 3 stars
by E1tex · remote
https://github.com/E1tex/Python-CVE-2020-25213

This Python script exploits CVE-2020-25213, a vulnerability in the WP File Manager plugin for WordPress, allowing arbitrary file upload and execution. It checks for vulnerability status and uploads a specified file to the target server.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WP File Manager plugin for WordPress < 6.9
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target running vulnerable WP File Manager plugin · Network access to the target WordPress site
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 1 stars
by kakamband · poc
https://github.com/kakamband/WPKiller

WPKiller is a WordPress security scanner designed to identify vulnerabilities in WordPress sites and plugins. It does not contain exploit code but rather scans for potential issues.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: WordPress (various versions)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Access to the target WordPress site
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by KienHoSD · remote
https://github.com/KienHoSD/wp-file-manager-exploit-CVE-2020-25213-with-Zerologon

This repository contains a functional Python exploit for CVE-2020-25213, which targets an unauthenticated arbitrary file upload vulnerability in the WordPress File Manager plugin (versions 6.0-6.9). The exploit uploads a PHP shell via the vulnerable elFinder connector and executes arbitrary commands.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress File Manager plugin (versions 6.0-6.9)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: WordPress site with vulnerable File Manager plugin installed
devstral-2 · analyzed May 19, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WRITEUP
by Cmadhushanka · poc
https://github.com/Cmadhushanka/wordpress-rce-vapt-cve-2020-25213

This repository provides a detailed technical writeup of the WordPress File Manager Plugin RCE (CVE-2020-25213), including attack chain analysis, lab environment setup, and mitigation strategies. It does not contain functional exploit code but offers in-depth research and VAPT methodology.

Classification
Writeup 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: WordPress File Manager Plugin < 6.9
No auth needed
Prerequisites: WordPress with vulnerable File Manager Plugin · network access to target
devstral-2 · analyzed May 19, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by b1ackros337 · poc
https://github.com/b1ackros337/CVE-2020-25213

This is a minimal PHP-based remote command execution (RCE) PoC for CVE-2020-25213, leveraging a vulnerable parameter to execute arbitrary system commands. The exploit is trivial and directly exposes a system call via a GET parameter.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress File Manager Plugin (versions <= 6.8)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Vulnerable WordPress File Manager Plugin installed · Access to the target endpoint
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec STUB
by forse01 · poc
https://github.com/forse01/CVE-2020-25213-Wordpress

The repository appears to be a stub or incomplete PoC for CVE-2020-25213, containing only standard WordPress and Composer files without any exploit code. No offensive techniques or vulnerability-specific payloads are present.

Classification
Stub 90%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: WordPress (version unspecified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: None identified
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
metasploit WORKING POC NORMAL
by Alex Souza (w4fz5uck5) · rubypoc
https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/exploits/multi/http/wp_file_manager_rce.rb

This Metasploit module exploits CVE-2020-25213, an unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability in the WordPress File Manager plugin (versions 6.0-6.8). It leverages the elFinder connector to upload or create a malicious PHP file, then executes it to achieve RCE.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: WordPress File Manager plugin 6.0-6.8
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target running vulnerable WordPress File Manager plugin · Network access to the WordPress site
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →

Nuclei Templates (1)

WordPress File Manager Plugin - Remote Code Execution
CRITICALby foulenzer

Scores

CVSS v3 10.0
EPSS 0.9733
EPSS Percentile 99.9%
Attack Vector NETWORK
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation active
Automatable yes
Technical Impact total

Details

CISA KEV 2021-11-03
VulnCheck KEV 2020-09-09
InTheWild.io 2020-11-10
ENISA EUVD EUVD-2020-17903
CWE
CWE-434
Status published
Products (1)
filemanagerpro/file_manager < 6.9
Published Sep 09, 2020
KEV Added Nov 03, 2021
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026