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Latest news on WordPress, providing comprehensive coverage of WordPress security, WordPress vulnerability reports, WordPress plugins and themes, plugin vulnerabilities, hacked sites and malware, WordPress updates and core security releases, WooCommerce, Gutenberg, Elementor, Automattic, Matt Mullenweg, WP Engine, WordCamp and PHP flaws for site owners, developers and agencies.
WordPress is a free, open-source content management system used to build blogs, business websites, online shops and publishing platforms. W3Techs figures for October 2026 show it powering roughly four in ten websites and most sites with a known CMS. The project was co-founded by Matt Mullenweg, whose company Automattic runs WordPress.com and owns WooCommerce.
Security is the biggest recurring theme in WordPress news, with new plugin and theme vulnerabilities reported every week. In October 2026, a tainted premium SEO plugin release and stolen backup-plugin keys were used to plant backdoors on sites. A September 2026 core security release fixed a critical flaw that attackers began probing within hours of its publication. Two critical PHP flaws fixed in October 2026 affected the language WordPress runs on, so hosts had to patch PHP.
The ecosystem rests on themes, plugins and page builders such as Elementor, with WooCommerce adding online shop features. Gutenberg, the block editor added in WordPress 5.0 in December 2018, replaced the classic editing screen as the default. Security specialists such as Wordfence, Patchstack and Sucuri publish vulnerability data and malware research for site owners. Their reports help owners spot hacked sites and decide which updates to apply first.
The community includes volunteer contributors, local meetups and WordCamp conferences, which began in San Francisco in 2006. Governance has drawn debate, including control of the WordPress.org plugin directory and a September 2026 board dispute at Automattic. The dispute between Automattic and WP Engine began in September 2024 and was still in court in October 2026. Both sides contest the claims, and a September 2026 ruling let parts of each side's case proceed.
WordPress began in 2003, when Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little forked the stalled b2/cafelog blogging software. Version 0.7 was released on 27 May 2003, and the project's release history lists 1.0 in January 2004. Automattic was founded in 2005, the WordPress Foundation followed in 2010, and Automattic acquired WooThemes, maker of WooCommerce, in 2015. It has since grown from a simple blogging tool into a general website and online shop platform.
Our NewsNow WordPress news feed brings together headlines on WordPress security, plugin vulnerabilities, updates, WooCommerce, Automattic and the community. Site owners, developers and agencies get a single, up-to-date view of what is changing across the ecosystem.
