Insights on Learners' Needs and Proposal for WordPress Sustainability Team Amidst Security Concerns

This post was curated and edited by Ben Gillbanks. Ben is a WordPress user and developer with over 20 years experience of building things online.

Hello and welcome to WP Briefs for Wednesday 31st May 2023. Today we have news on the results of an initial survey into learners’ needs when learning or expanding their knowledge of WordPress, a proposal for the establishment of a formal WordPress Sustainability Team, a security vulnerability in the Gravity Forms plugin, tips on how to reduce DNS lookups to speed up a WordPress site, and Automattic’s decision to force install a security patch on millions of websites using Jetpack.

First up, an analysis of the Individual Learner Survey results has revealed important findings regarding learners’ needs when it comes to learning and expanding their knowledge of WordPress. These insights will be used by educators and developers alike to improve the learning experience for all those interested in WordPress.

Next, there is a proposal for the establishment of an official WordPress Sustainability Team aimed at making WordPress and its community lead on sustainability. The 20th anniversary of WordPress serves as a fitting reminder that now is the time to act on sustainability. The team would focus on reducing carbon emissions related to web development through sustainable practices such as server optimization and energy-efficient coding. This initiative would make Wordpress stand out amongst other CMS platforms by setting an example for responsible environmental conduct.

Reducing DNS lookups can help boost performance when optimizing your Wordpress site’s speed- this is something that should not be overlooked. This article from Jetpack looks at how this can be done on your WordPress site.

Moving onto security news, there is an unauthenticated PHP Object Injection in Gravity Forms Plugin which poses serious risks if not addressed promptly. Users are advised to update their plugins immediately with at least version 2.7.4 or sign up for Patchstack Community plan which provides timely updates about vulnerabilities.

Lastly, Automattic has decided to force install a security patch on millions of websites using Jetpack WordPress plugin in order to address a critical vulnerability. This move serves as an important reminder that users must prioritize keeping their plugins updated at all times.

That’s it for today’s WP Briefs, have a great day!

Related links

• Analysis of the Individual Learner Survey results
• Proposal: establishment of a formal WordPress Sustainability Team
• Unauthenticated PHP Object Injection in Gravity Forms Plugin
• How to Reduce DNS Lookups to Speed Up a WordPress Site
• Jetpack 12.1.1: Critical Security Update
• WordPress force installs critical Jetpack patch on 5 million sites