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wp.today: issue 001
Another exciting week in San Francisco's vibrant tech ecosystem!
Richard Madison
July 15, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes
🌟 Editor's Note
Gravity Forms Hacked + Admin Email Mining Exposed Today
July 15, 2025
Hackers Inject Malware Into Gravity Forms WordPress Plugin
Gravity Forms, a WordPress plugin used by over 1 million websites to create contact forms and surveys, was compromised by hackers. For two days in July, people who manually downloaded the plugin got infected versions that created secret backdoors into their websites. The company quickly fixed the problem and released a clean version, but it shows how hackers are targeting the software supply chain to reach more victims at once.
Let’s Get Started
Another day, another handful of WordPress drama and discoveries to sort through.
I've been watching this WordPress ecosystem evolve for more years than I care to count, and honestly, some days it feels like we're living through a soap opera. The whole Matt Mullenweg vs. WP Engine saga has gotten so messy that the Linux Foundation is stepping in with something called FAIR - basically a way to prevent any one person from holding the keys to nearly half the internet. It's wild that we've gotten to this point, but maybe it's exactly what we needed to mature as a platform.
On the security front, we're seeing hackers get craftier by the day. That Gravity Forms supply chain attack back in July was a wake-up call - even the most trusted plugins can get compromised for a brief window. And there's this eye-opening piece about how attackers are mining admin emails right from our own WordPress sites using features we probably never thought twice about. Makes you realize that all those fancy security plugins don't mean much if you're broadcasting your admin email through author pages and contact forms.
But it's not all doom and gloom - the Performance Team continues to quietly make WordPress faster for everyone, which is the kind of behind-the-scenes work that really matters when you're powering 40% of the web.
Thanks for letting me ramble through another day in this wonderfully chaotic WordPress world we call home.
Welcome to another exciting week in San Francisco's vibrant tech ecosystem! We've got a packed newsletter full of insights, events, and inspiring stories from the heart of innovation.
WordPress Turmoil and the FAIR Package Manager
WordPress powers 43% of all websites, but a bitter fight between its co-founder Matt Mullenweg and major hosting company WP Engine has exposed a big problem: one person controls too much. When Mullenweg demanded WP Engine pay 8% of revenue and then blocked their access to plugin updates, millions of websites couldn't get security fixes. Now the Linux Foundation is launching FAIR, a new system to spread control across multiple sources so no single person can disrupt the internet like this again.
Build Client Sites Faster with These WordPress White Label Page Builder Plugins
White label WordPress page builders let web designers and agencies remove third-party branding and replace it with their own company logos. Instead of showing 'Built with Elementor,' clients see your business name throughout the website building process. Popular options include Brizy Pro, Beaver Builder, and Oxygen Builder. These tools combine drag-and-drop website building with professional branding, helping small agencies compete with larger companies while building sites faster.
How to Integrate Zoom Meetings and Webinars on WordPress
Managing Zoom meeting invitations manually is a huge time-waster for coaches, educators, and small business owners. This detailed guide shows how to use a WordPress automation plugin called Uncanny Automator to connect Zoom with your website. Now when someone fills out a contact form, they automatically get added to the right meeting. When customers buy courses, they're instantly registered for welcome webinars. It's like having a personal assistant that never sleeps.
Exposed: How WordPress admin emails are mined by hackers
WordPress site owners focus on strong passwords but often overlook a bigger threat: hackers systematically collecting admin email addresses. Using default WordPress features like author pages and contact forms, attackers can easily find your admin email. Once they have it, they can launch brute-force attacks, send convincing phishing emails, or use password reset functions to take over your site completely. The article reveals exactly how these attacks work and provides practical steps to hide your identity and secure your login.
5 Order Confirmation Page Designs That Boost Sales (With Examples)
After someone buys from your online store, they see a confirmation page - usually just a boring receipt. But companies like Amazon, Sephora, and Walmart use this page to drive more sales by showing related products, personalizing thank-you messages, and adding helpful features. A WordPress plugin called Flux Checkout helps WooCommerce stores create these smart confirmation pages that keep customers engaged and buying more.
From the Fueled Blog: How We Sped Up WordPress and the Open Web
WordPress runs 40% of the internet, so when it gets faster, everyone benefits. The WordPress Performance Team - a group effort between multiple companies - has been quietly improving WordPress behind the scenes. 10up's team helped make changes to how WordPress handles images, scripts, and loading data. These improvements are now built into WordPress itself, meaning millions of websites automatically run faster without their owners lifting a finger.
🚀 You Crack Me Up
Dad Joke of the Day
I had a great childhood. Dad used to roll me down hills in tires. Those were Goodyears.
🦄 Startup Spotlight
Pixel Pioneers: The Quirky Startup Redefining Digital Creativity
They are a startup to watch as they are democratizing high-end design for small businesses, reducing design creation time by 80% & proving that creativity can be both seriously innovative and seriously fun.
The Backstory: Founded by three former Pixar animators who got tired of traditional design workflows
Key Innovation: An AI-powered design platform that turns stick figure sketches into professional-grade illustrations in seconds
Funding: $5M seed round, backed by Silicon Valley's most eccentric investors
🔥 In Case You Missed It…
Funding Roundup
Quantum Leap Technologies secured $45M Series B, led by Sequoia Capital, to advance quantum computing infrastructure for enterprise solutions.
EcoGrid AI raised $22M to develop machine learning algorithms for renewable energy grid optimization.
MindSync Neurtech closed a $15M seed round to expand its brain-computer interface research.
🏆 Reader of the Week
 | Alex Rodriguez: Tech Innovator with a Retro Twist🌉 Background: Software engineer and digital health entrepreneur from San Francisco's Mission District 👑 Achievement: Recently developed an AI-powered diagnostic tool that reduces medical screening times by 60% for early-stage cancer detection 🙈 Quirk: Proudly carries a vintage flip phone, a stark contrast to his cutting-edge AI work |
The Flip Phone Rebel
Despite developing state-of-the-art AI technology, Alex Rodriguez sports a beat-up flip phone that's become something of a local legend in San Francisco's tech circles. "It's my conversation starter," he jokes. "I can build complex machine learning algorithms, but I refuse to give up my trusty Nokia."
Technology isn't just about the latest gadget—it's about solving real-world problems that can genuinely improve people's lives.
His colleagues often tease him about the phone, but Alex sees it as a symbol of his unconventional approach to technology. "Just because something is old doesn't mean it's not valuable," he says with a grin. "Same goes for people, algorithms, and apparently, mobile phones."
A graduate of Stanford's computer science program, Alex embodies the innovative spirit of San Francisco's tech ecosystem—proving that breakthrough innovation can come from someone who still uses T9 texting.
Did You Know? The first computer bug was literally a bug—in 1947, Grace Hopper found a moth trapped in a Harvard Mark II computer, coining the term "debugging" in the process.
Till next time,