Vulnerability report

Exploitation attempts observed in the wild High confidence Not in CISA KEV

CVE-2023-6553

Backup Migration Remote Code Execution

Migrate / Backup Migration · * to <= 1.3.7

Watch CVE-2023-6553 Browse KEV feed
Severity
CVSS 9.8 · Critical
Confidence
High
Exploit status
Exploitation attempts observed in the wild
EPSS
97.8%
First observed
—
Last observed
—

Decision summary

What security teams need to know first

Direct answers before the deeper technical record.

What it is

CVE-2023-6553 is an unauthenticated vulnerability affecting Migrate Backup Migration. The Backup Migration plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution in all versions up to, and including, 1.3.7 via...

Have exploitation attempts been observed?

Yes. Exploitation attempts have been reported for this vulnerability. Previdian lists it as a known exploited vulnerability. Also reported by third-party sources. Confidence is high.

Who is affected?

Migrate / Backup Migration * to <= 1.3.7.

What should we do?

Prioritize remediation. Validate affected assets and apply vendor fixes on an accelerated timeline.

Overview

Backup Migration Remote Code Execution

The Backup Migration plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution in all versions up to, and including, 1.3.7 via the /includes/backup-heart.php file. This is due to an attacker being able to control the values passed to an include, and subsequently leverage that to achieve remote code execution.

This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to easily execute code on the server.

migrate Affected
Backup Migration
Through 1.3.7
Published
15 Dec 2023
Exploitation Attempts Reported
15 Dec 2023
Attack vector
Remote
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None

Tags

nuclei_scanner metasploit_scanner

CVE References

Exploitation evidence

Evidence of exploitation attempts

Third-party attestation and first-party sensor observation are shown separately so teams can judge the evidence chain.

Exploitation attempts observed in the wild

The Shadowserver

Recorded 15 Dec 2023

A trusted third party reported exploitation attempts.

Proof of concept available

GitHub

Recorded 13 Dec 2023

Public scanner or PoC coverage increases practical exploitability.

Known exploited vulnerability sources

Per-source evidence links for KEV attestations are available through the Previdian Pro API.

Learn about Pro API access
Source Added
The Shadowserver First 2023-12-15 10:59 UTC

Detection

Operational artifacts and observed signals

Make the evidence actionable in scanner, SOC, and edge-control workflows.

Observed signals

Request targets
User-Agents
Callback hosts
0
0
0

Request targets and User-Agents available in Pro. Callback host details available in Enterprise.

Virtual patch status

No Previdian virtual patch is currently available. Future rules ship for ModSecurity, Cloudflare, and AWS WAF.

Learn about virtual patches →

Scanner Artifacts

Scanner and exploit-framework references linked to this CVE.

Scanner Reference Detected
Metasploit https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/exploits/multi/http/wp_backup_migration_php_filter.rb 28 Apr 2025
Nuclei https://github.com/projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates/blob/main/http/cves/2023/CVE-2023-6553.yaml 25 Apr 2025

Risk and context

Severity, weaknesses, and research context

CVSS v3.1

9.8 Critical

Potential damage if exploited. Separate from whether attackers are using it.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS

97.8%

Estimated chance of exploitation in the next 30 days. Previdian's warning comes from evidence, not this score.

Weaknesses

Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection') CWE-94

Potential Proof of Concepts

These PoCs are unverified and could contain malware. Use at your own risk.

Worpress Backup Migration <= 1.3.7 - Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution

nuclei · Created Unknown

wp_backup_migration_php_filter

metasploit · Created Unknown

Metasploit module for CVE-2023-6553

Timeline

From disclosure to observed exploitation attempts

  1. 15:02 UTC

    Metasploit module available

    Exploit module available

  2. 15:02 UTC

    Public PoC available

    Public proof-of-concept code published

  3. 00:00 UTC

    Nuclei template available

    Scanner coverage available

  4. 10:59 UTC

    CVE published

    Vulnerability disclosed publicly

  5. 10:59 UTC

    Added to Previdian KEV Feed

    High-confidence, third-party report of exploitation attempts

  6. 12:56 UTC

    CVE ID reserved

    Identifier reserved by the CNA

Pro API

Automate this intelligence

Confidence, exploit status, sensor telemetry, PoCs, scanner integrations, mentions, and tags are available programmatically for VM, SOC, and CTI workflows.

Start 14-day Pro trial Read API docs
  • Evidence confidence and provenance
  • First-party sensor telemetry
  • PoC and scanner references
  • Affected versions and enrichment
  • Automation-ready JSON delivery

GET /api/v2/pro/kevs/CVE-2023-6553

Sample API response 
{
  "cve_id": "CVE-2023-6553",
  "confidence": "High",
  "cvss_score": 9.8,
  "cvss_estimated": false,
  "epss_score": 0.97846,
  "exploit_status": {
    "exploited_in_the_wild": true,
    "active_exploitation_observed": false
  },
  "sensor_telemetry": { "attempts": 0, "sensors": 0 }
}