WordPress 4.9.5 Security and Maintenance Release

WordPress 4.9.5 is now available. This is a security and maintenance release for all versions since WordPress 3.7. We strongly encourage you to update your sites immediately.

WordPress versions 4.9.4 and earlier are affected by three security issues. As part of the core team’s ongoing commitment to security hardening, the following fixes have been implemented in 4.9.5:

1. Don’t treat localhost as same host by default.
2. Use safe redirects when redirecting the login page if SSL is forced.
3. Make sure the version string is correctly escaped for use in generator tags.

Thank you to the reporters of these issues for practicing coordinated security disclosure: xknown of the WordPress Security Team, Nitin Venkatesh (nitstorm), and Garth Mortensen of the WordPress Security Team.

Twenty-five other bugs were fixed in WordPress 4.9.5. Particularly of note were:

• The previous styles on caption shortcodes have been restored.
• Cropping on touch screen devices is now supported.
• A variety of strings such as error messages have been updated for better clarity.
• The position of an attachment placeholder during uploads has been fixed.
• Custom nonce functionality in the REST API JavaScript client has been made consistent throughout the code base.
• Improved compatibility with PHP 7.2.

Download WordPress 4.9.5 or venture over to Dashboard → Updates and click “Update Now.” Sites that support automatic background updates are already beginning to update automatically.