
Meta Box Security & Risk Analysis
wordpress.org/plugins/meta-boxMeta Box plugin is a powerful, professional developer toolkit to create custom meta boxes and custom fields for your custom post types in WordPress.
Is Meta Box Safe to Use in 2026?
Generally Safe
Score 89/100Meta Box has a strong security track record. Known vulnerabilities have been patched promptly.
The static analysis of Meta Box v5.11.2 indicates a generally strong security posture with excellent adherence to secure coding practices. The plugin demonstrates a high level of output escaping (99%) and utilizes prepared statements for all SQL queries. The presence of nonce and capability checks on a majority of its entry points (all 11 are protected) further enhances its security. The absence of dangerous functions, critical or high severity taint flows, and unsanitized paths is highly encouraging.
However, the vulnerability history presents a significant concern. With 6 known CVEs, including 3 high and 3 medium severity vulnerabilities, this plugin has a concerning track record. The types of past vulnerabilities, such as Path Traversal, Exposure of Sensitive Information, Cross-site Scripting, Missing Authorization, and External Control of File Name or Path, suggest recurring issues with input validation and authorization, even though current analysis shows these are addressed. The last reported vulnerability was in March 2026, which is in the future, suggesting potential data entry error or a forward-looking vulnerability reporting system; assuming this is a past event, the plugin has a history of critical security flaws.
In conclusion, while the current version of Meta Box v5.11.2 exhibits strong secure coding practices and a clean static analysis, its past vulnerability history necessitates caution. Users should remain vigilant and ensure they are always running the latest patched versions, as the plugin has demonstrated a tendency for exploitable security flaws in the past. The success in addressing past issues is positive, but the sheer number and severity of historical vulnerabilities cannot be overlooked.
Key Concerns
- History of high severity vulnerabilities
- History of medium severity vulnerabilities
- Bundled library Select2 (potential outdated component)
Meta Box Security Vulnerabilities
CVEs by Year
Severity Breakdown
6 total CVEs
Meta Box <= 5.11.1 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Arbitrary File Deletion
Meta Box – WordPress Custom Fields Framework <= 5.9.10 - Missing Authorization to Information Exposure
Meta Box – WordPress Custom Fields Framework <= 5.9.3 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Information Exposure via Post Meta
Meta Box – WordPress Custom Fields Framework <= 5.9.2 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting
Meta Box - WordPress Custom Fields Framework <= 4.16.2 - File Deletion via attachment_id Parameter
Meta Box <= 4.16.1 - Mishandling of File Upload
Meta Box Code Analysis
Bundled Libraries
SQL Query Safety
Output Escaping
Meta Box Attack Surface
AJAX Handlers 10
Shortcodes 1
WordPress Hooks 38
Maintenance & Trust
Meta Box Maintenance & Trust
Maintenance Signals
Community Trust
Meta Box Alternatives
Pods – Custom Content Types and Fields
pods
Pods is a framework for creating, managing, and deploying customized content types and fields for any project.
CubeWP Framework
cubewp-framework
CubeWP is an end-to-end dynamic content framework for WordPress to help you shrink time and cut cost of development up to 90%.
Custom post types, Custom Fields & more
custom-post-types
Custom Post Types, Custom Fields, Custom Taxonomies, Custom Templates, Custom Admin Pages, Custom Admin Notices. Directly from the WP dashboard.
LIQUID TOOLS – Simple Custom Fields & Custom Post Types
liquid-tools
Very simple tool to set up Custom Fields, Custom Post Types, Custom Taxonomies.
MB ACF Migration
mb-acf-migration
Migrate custom fields from Advanced Custom Fields to Meta Box.
Meta Box Developer Profile
2 plugins · 500K total installs
How We Detect Meta Box
Patterns used to identify this plugin on WordPress sites during automated security audits and web crawling.
Asset Fingerprints
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/ DOM Fingerprints
rwmb-autocomplete-searchrwmb-autocompleterwmb-autocomplete-resultsrwmb-autocomplete-resultrwmb-autocomplete-valuerwmb-background-row<!-- .rwmb-autocomplete-results --><!-- .rwmb-autocomplete-result --><!-- .rwmb-background-row -->data-optionsRWMB_Autocomplete