If you’re a WordPress user and are using version 2.1.1 it is crucial that you upgrade to the latest version (2.1.2) – particularly if you upgraded in the last 3-4 days. The reason is that there has been a hacker compromise that version and add/change code.
For further details see the WordPress Blog
PS: Thanks to the many people who emailed me about this. I did see it first on the WP blog before checking email this morning.





My name is Darren Rowse and I’m a full time Blogger making a living from blogs like 
Aaaahhhh… secruity update… quick…. do it now!
I hate to hijack a post, but I have to ask on a blog that has ‘knowledgable’ users.
What is the suggested and most commonly used time frame for the maximum visit length? You know, the amount of time that has elapsed since a visitor last visited a page on your website, before that visitor is then considered unique again.
I would have thought 24 hrs, but I’ve read suggestions that it should be around 6 hrs. What do you think? I’m wanting my ‘stats’ to be accurate.
P.S. I don’t mind if you delete this Darren, just as long as you send me an email with the answer. ;-)
Does it compromise versions 2.1.1 AND LOWER, or simply 2.1.1?
Thanks,
Enrique
Did you all notice that Firefox’s Spell Check is working in WordPress 2.1.2’s Rich Text Editor again?!
Enrique, it’s only 2.1.1.
It compromises only 2.1.1. The article states that a hacker modified the download directly on wordpress.org in the last few days. Slightly older versions of 2.1.1 might not be affected, but it’s probably still a good idea to upgrade anyway. 2.1 and below do not have this problem. (Yay for being too lazy to upgrade!)
In short, to be safe, if you have 2.1.1, upgrade or you could be in for a very nasty surprise.
Boy am I glad I didn’t rush to “upgrade” to 2.1.1.
Its good they found but now everbody will have a doubt everytime they upgrade.They have to come up with something strong
Thanks. If I hadn’t seen your post I would have honestly never known.
One thing everyone running a wordpress blog should do is subscribe to the wordpress development blog rss feed. That way, you get rapid notification of problems such as this, and you can reduce the time window during which your site is vulnerable. The feed is here:
http://wordpress.org/development/feed/
Dan Mossop
Website Security Services
Thanks for your info, i have been upgraded my wordpress.
“Does it compromise versions 2.1.1 AND LOWER, or simply 2.1.1?”
I think it just 2.1.1 version.
Thanks everybody for your replies. I have an older version.
The problem I face with wordpress is that I made so many changes in the files that it would be a lot of work to upgrade.
Thank you! I simply use my backup changing back to 6.11
“Does it compromise versions 2.1.1 AND LOWER, or simply 2.1.1?”
As already stated, it’s only 2.1.1 and only if downloaded in about the last week – but if you have 2.1.1 you should probably upgrade anyway to be safe, regardless of when you downloaded it.
I think it should be highlighted that the WordPress team have dealt with this in an open, professional and responsible manner. I’m sure they’ll take great care to ensure that this cannot happen again.
There’s upgrade instructions on the WordPress site at http://codex.wordpress.org/Upgrading_WordPress and I’ve also documented the steps I took on my blog at http://blog.preshweb.co.uk/?id=15
I just want to add that if you are on a cpanel server and use WP through Fantastico they have updated to 2.1.2, however their version of 2.1.1 was not compromised anyway.
gracias