analyze_wordpress_security – WordPress Security Analysis

Specialized WordPress security vulnerability analysis with OWASP compliance and WordPress coding standards assessment

Perfect For

WordPress Plugin Security Auditing
Comprehensive security assessment for custom plugins with nonce verification, capability checking, and data sanitization compliance.

Theme Security Compliance
WordPress theme security analysis including proper escaping, sanitization, and secure coding practices verification.

Pre-Repository Submission Review
Security compliance checking before submitting plugins or themes to WordPress.org repository with coding standards validation.

Enterprise WordPress Security
Multi-site and enterprise WordPress installation security assessment with privilege escalation and data exposure analysis.

Client Project Security Review
Agency and freelancer security assessment for client WordPress projects with detailed security reporting and remediation guidance.

Quick Start

Analyze WordPress plugin security:

houtini-lm:analyze_wordpress_security with:
- projectPath: "C:/wp-content/plugins/my-plugin"
- analysisType: "comprehensive"
- wpVersion: "6.4"

Theme security analysis:

houtini-lm:analyze_wordpress_security with:
- projectPath: "C:/wp-content/themes/custom-theme"
- analysisType: "owasp"
- checkCapabilities: true
- auditDatabaseQueries: true

Security Analysis Output

WordPress-Specific Vulnerabilities

• Nonce Verification: Missing or improper nonce implementation in forms and AJAX requests
• Capability Checking: Insufficient user permission verification before sensitive operations
• Data Sanitization: Input sanitization compliance with WordPress functions and best practices
• Output Escaping: Proper escaping of dynamic content to prevent XSS vulnerabilities

Database Security Assessment

• wpdb Prepared Statements: Analysis of $wpdb->prepare() usage and SQL injection prevention
• Custom Query Security: Direct SQL query analysis for injection vulnerabilities and parameterization
• Database Table Security: Custom table creation, indexing, and data handling security assessment

OWASP Top 10 WordPress Compliance

• Injection Vulnerabilities: SQL injection, command injection, and code injection detection with WordPress context
• Authentication Issues: WordPress authentication bypass, session management, and user role security
• Access Control: Privilege escalation, capability bypass, and unauthorized function access
• Security Misconfiguration: WordPress configuration security, file permissions, and debugging exposure

WordPress Security Example

Vulnerable WordPress Code

// Critical WordPress security vulnerabilities
add_action('wp_ajax_update_user_data', 'handle_user_update');

function handle_user_update() {
    // Missing nonce verification
    $user_id = $_POST['user_id'];
    $user_data = $_POST['user_data'];
    
    // No capability checking
    // No data sanitization
    $wpdb->query(
        "UPDATE users SET data = '" . $user_data . "' WHERE id = " . $user_id
    );
    
    // Direct output without escaping
    echo "User updated: " . $user_data;
}

Security Analysis Results

• Critical: Missing Nonce Verification – CSRF vulnerability allows unauthorized actions
• Critical: SQL Injection – Direct concatenation enables database compromise
• High: No Capability Checking – Any authenticated user can modify data
• Medium: XSS Vulnerability – Unescaped output enables script injection
• Medium: Missing Sanitization – User input processed without validation

Secure WordPress Implementation

// Secure WordPress implementation
add_action('wp_ajax_update_user_data', 'handle_user_update');

function handle_user_update() {
    // Verify nonce for CSRF protection
    if (!wp_verify_nonce($_POST['nonce'], 'update_user_data_nonce')) {
        wp_die('Security check failed');
    }
    
    // Check user capabilities
    if (!current_user_can('edit_users')) {
        wp_die('Insufficient permissions');
    }
    
    // Sanitize input data
    $user_id = intval($_POST['user_id']);
    $user_data = sanitize_text_field($_POST['user_data']);
    
    // Use prepared statements
    global $wpdb;
    $result = $wpdb->update(
        $wpdb->users,
        array('data' => $user_data),
        array('ID' => $user_id),
        array('%s'),
        array('%d')
    );
    
    if ($result !== false) {
        // Escape output
        wp_send_json_success('User updated: ' . esc_html($user_data));
    } else {
        wp_send_json_error('Update failed');
    }
}

Parameters

Analysis Type Focus

• owasp: OWASP Top 10 compliance with WordPress-specific context
• wordpress: WordPress coding standards and security best practices
• comprehensive: Complete analysis including OWASP, WordPress standards, and custom security patterns

Advanced Configuration

Plugin Security Audit: Comprehensive analysis for WordPress plugin development with repository compliance checking.

// Complete plugin security audit
houtini-lm:analyze_wordpress_security with:
- projectPath: "C:/wp-content/plugins/ecommerce-plugin"
- analysisType: "comprehensive"
- analysisDepth: "comprehensive"
- auditDatabaseQueries: true
- checkCapabilities: true
- includeOwaspTop10: true
- wpVersion: "6.4"

// Theme security focused analysis
houtini-lm:analyze_wordpress_security with:
- projectPath: "C:/wp-content/themes/custom-theme"
- analysisType: "wordpress"
- checkCapabilities: false
- auditDatabaseQueries: false

WordPress Security Workflow:

1. Run analyze_wordpress_security with comprehensive analysis
2. Address critical nonce and capability issues immediately
3. Implement proper sanitization and escaping
4. Secure database queries with prepared statements
5. Test functionality and re-run security analysis

Pro Tips

WordPress Security Priority: Address nonce verification and capability checking first – these prevent the most common WordPress vulnerabilities.

Repository Compliance: Use comprehensive analysis before submitting to WordPress.org repository to ensure compliance with security guidelines.

Database Security: Always enable auditDatabaseQueries for plugins that interact with the database – SQL injection is a critical WordPress vulnerability.

Related Functions

• audit_wordpress_plugin – Complete plugin audit including security, performance, and quality
• audit_wordpress_theme – Comprehensive theme analysis including security compliance
• analyze_database_queries – Detailed database security analysis with WordPress context
• security_audit – General security analysis for WordPress projects