Disable XML-RPC Pingback
by Samuel Aguilera · Uncategorized
Also makes 13 other plugins · 86.9K+ installs across the portfolio →
Stops abuse of your site's XML-RPC by simply removing some methods used by attackers. While you can use the rest of XML-RPC methods.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
C 68/100
no flags
Active installs
60K+
≈65K estimated
Momentum
+35%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “xml” and “ddos” for “pingbacks” and “abuse”. “xml” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #23. “pingbacks” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “ddos” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #15. “abuse” sits at #17 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
68 health vs 58 average across 25,737 Uncategorized plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →14%
of downloads still active
At least 60K of 434.1K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Uncategorized plugin keeps 0.6%, across 17,769 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Uncategorized plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
This plugin shipped 1 release in the last 12 months, and every existing install that updated counted as another download. wp.org publishes no split between first installs and updates, so we show the raw rate rather than guess at one.
Details
Recent review vibe
read from the latest 12 reviews to 2025-10-21Most reviewers say it does exactly what it promises against XML-RPC pingback attacks and still works years later, though a couple report it didn't block anything on their setup or broke their site.
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 341 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.8.12, the current branch or newer
3.9★ over 14 reviews, smoothed to 4.06★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Too few reviews to rank on quality — nudge happy users to leave one.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
30
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.6
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
0%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
-0.6
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| pingback your tag | #1 | #2 | 0 |
| xml rpc pingback | #1 | #1 | 0 |
| disable xml rpc | #5 | #11 | down 2 |
| buzz | #3 | #4 | 0 |
| disable xml | #6 | #16 | down 2 |
| rpc your tag | #8 | #17 | down 2 |
| xml rpc your tag | #8 | #17 | down 2 |
| pingbacks | #6 | #11 | down 1 |
| remove xml rpc | #5 | #12 | 0 |
| ddos your tag | #15 | #14 | down 2 |
| abuse | #17 | #19 | 0 |
| xml your tag | #23 | #22 | down 1 |
| disable rest | #23 | #24 | 0 |
19 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 13 listed. 6 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words).
What to do about it
- Swap “xml” and “ddos” for “pingbacks” and “abuse”. “xml” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #23. “pingbacks” sits at #6 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “ddos” isn't earning its slot: it only gets you to #15. “abuse” sits at #17 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
- One page off on “ddos”. #15 puts you just past the first ten results, where almost all the clicks stop. The gap to close is small.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 2.7K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
1
releases in the last 12 months
11mo ago
latest release · v1.2.2 · 24 Nov 2025
5
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 95% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “60K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 2.5 years ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 50% of the way through.
Install history since 4 Sep 2019
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Gordon1.0y ago
The plugin author is still actively engaged with this excellently useful plugin. It receives updates only when needed which might be years in between updates. Still works great! Highly recommend.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ morti0375.5y ago
There is better option than this plugin. I have used disable xmlrpc api and its works fine for me.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ captainzandra6.1y ago
This broke my site, I had to revert to a backup on the server after installing it.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Fernando Tellado9.8y ago
Gran trabajo Samuel, en combinación con algunas reglas de htaccess hace un trabajo fantástico.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ wplike7510.0y ago
Thank you for this free and great plugin.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ gmyoganand10.4y ago
Does what it says and this is what needed for a XMLRPC attacks. Thanks.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ yolandal10.4y ago
I’m confused here… I see this plugin I’ve never heard of and I never installed… and the bad thing is; I can’t remove it! If this is a security plugin it sure doesn’t behave like it! It’s behaviour is a no-go for me. Update: My hosting provider admittd they have installed this plugin. But they never notified me. So now I’m giving a 5 star rating.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ zoxee11.2y ago
Doesn’t work on 4.2.4. For testing purposes i installed 2 plugins to compare : 1. Disable XML-RPC Pingback from Samuel Aguilera 2. Disable XML-RPC from Philipp Erb When 1 is activated, i am still able to post articles from 3 different applications. When 2 is activated, i get following message in all 3rd party applications : “XML-RPC services are disabled on this site” Samuel, instead of insulting people you should update you plugin.
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 1.2.2 Improved WP version checking to avoid a notice under certain versions of WP. 1.2.2
- — Version 1.2.1 Minor changes to make code 100% compliant with WordPress Coding Standards. 1.2.1
- — Version 1.2 Added support for X-Pingback header removal in recent versions of WP. 1.2
- — Version 1.1 Added code to remove X-Pingback from HTTP headers as suggested by user https://wordpress.org/support/topic/remove-x-pingback-http-header 1.1
- — Version 1.0 Initial release. 1.0
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.4.8 · WP 5.7.2
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 15 languages, 15 at 90% or more
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
3 of 8 pass · checked 26 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ! Says what it does Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ! Has a FAQ No FAQ section.
- ! FAQ asks real questions No FAQ to judge.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Jetpack.
- ✓ Headings and lists 2 headings and 3 lists.
- ! Enough to quote 946 characters of description; under 1,000 there is little to quote.
- ✓ Tags match the text 4 of 5 tags appear in the text; "ddos" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2024-05-18 70K+ → 60K+ down after 12 days in tier
- 2024-05-06 60K+ → 70K+ up after 84 days in tier
- 2024-02-12 70K+ → 60K+ down after 1228 days in tier
- 2020-10-02 80K+ → 70K+ down after 1033 days in tier
- 2017-12-04 70K+ → 80K+ up after 345 days in tier
- 2016-12-24 60K+ → 70K+ up after 104 days in tier
- 2016-09-11 40K+ → 60K+ up after 285 days in tier
- 2015-12-01 30K+ → 40K+ up
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
Simple XML-RPC Disabler 20+ installs · 3.6★ · 4 shared tags -
Simple XML-RPC Pingback Disabler 10+ installs · 3.6★ · 4 shared tags -
Remove XML-RPC Pingback — installs · 3.6★ · 4 shared tags -
Remove & Disable XML-RPC Pingback 7K+ installs · 3.6★ · 2 shared tags D -
Eazy XMLRPC Pingback Disable 700+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags D - D Deactivate XML-RPC on WordPress 200+ installs · 3.6★ · 2 shared tags
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Disable XML-RPC Pingback into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/disable-xml-rpc-pingback" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Disable XML-RPC Pingback — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Disable XML-RPC Pingback: 60K+ active installs, 3.9★ (14 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/disable-xml-rpc-pingback
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Report a data issue and we'll check it against the source.