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SyntaxHighlighter Evolved

by Alex Mills · 20,000+ active installs · Checked 4 Nov 2026
Watch2 Warnings

Watch: tested up to WordPress 6.7.11, 4 major versions behind 7.1.4.

70/ 100 Canary Score
Sub-scores for SyntaxHighlighter Evolved
Ownership100
Maintenance20
Security95
Support70
Reputation70

How the score works

Quick answers

Is SyntaxHighlighter Evolved still maintained?
No. Last release 3 Mar 2025, over 1 year ago. 3 Mar 2025 · wordpress.org
Who owns SyntaxHighlighter Evolved, and has it changed hands?
No change recorded. Main committer fjorgemota since Dec 2023. 4 Nov 2026 · SVN log
Was SyntaxHighlighter Evolved removed from wordpress.org?
No. Listed on wordpress.org as of 4 Nov 2026. 4 Nov 2026 · wordpress.org
Is SyntaxHighlighter Evolved safe?
3 known vulnerabilities, all fixed (latest in 3.7.2). Not on the exploited list. 27 Mar 2025 · Wordfence Intelligence
Is the latest SyntaxHighlighter Evolved update safe to install?
No ownership change before 3.7.2. No one-star spike after it. 3 Mar 2025 · Release history

Active signals

Facts we detected, with links to the source.

  • WarningMNT-2Tested up to WordPress 6.7.11, 4 major versions behind 7.1.4. Plan a replacement if the plugin is important to your site.3 Nov 2026Evidence
  • WarningMNT-1No release in 20 months (last release 3 Mar 2025). Plan a replacement if the plugin is important to your site.3 Mar 2026Evidence

Ownership timeline

Who commits to the plugin's code on wordpress.org, over time.

Committers and their active periods
Viper007Bond10 Sep 2007 to 31 Dec 2018, 137 commits
donncha8 Oct 2019 to 22 Jan 2020, 3 commits
gikaragia12 Feb 2020 to 12 Feb 2020, 2 commits
renathoc8 Apr 2020 to 17 Apr 2023, 12 commits
merkushin29 Nov 2021 to 29 Nov 2021, 2 commits
aaronfc16 May 2022 to 16 May 2022, 2 commits
fjorgemota5 Dec 2023 to 3 Mar 2025, 6 commits

7 committers recorded. No ownership change since 2007.

Maintenance

Last release
20 months ago
Releases, 24 months
2
Tested up to
6.7 vs 7.1
Requires PHP
7.0 supported 8.2+
Releases per quarter
Releases per quarter for SyntaxHighlighter Evolved
Q1 20240
Q2 20240
Q3 20240
Q4 20241
Q1 20251
Q2 20250
Q3 20250
Q4 20250
Q1 20260
Q2 20260
Q3 20260
Q4 20260

Last release 3 Mar 2025. Tested up to 6.7, 4 major versions behind WordPress 7.1.

Reputation

Last 90 days: no reviews. Lifetime: 4.3.

Average rating rose from 1.0 to 5.0 between Q1 2024 and Q2 2024.

Rating distribution
5 star65
4 star5
3 star3
2 star4
1 star9
Latest low reviews

Security record

1 vulnerability in 24 months (3 on record), patched (latest fixed in 3.7.2).

Show 3 patched vulnerabilities
PublishedIssueCVSSAffectedFixed inDays to patch
27 Mar 2025SyntaxHighlighter Evolved <= 3.7.1 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting6.4<= 3.7.13.7.2Patched before disclosure
21 Oct 2019SyntaxHighlighter Evolved < 3.5.1 - Stored Cross-Site Scripting7.2< 3.5.13.5.1Patched before disclosure
1 Aug 2014SyntaxHighlighter Evolved <= 3.1.9 - Cross-Site Scripting6.1<= 3.1.93.1.10n/a

Sources: Wordfence Intelligence, CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities, readme changelogs.

Support

100% of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months.

Momentum

20,000+ active installs. History builds with each weekly snapshot.

Weekly downloads, last 27 weeks
Weekly downloads for SyntaxHighlighter Evolved
4 May 2026254
11 May 2026538
18 May 2026564
25 May 2026461
1 Jun 2026501
8 Jun 2026470
15 Jun 2026390
22 Jun 2026391
29 Jun 2026355
6 Jul 2026406
13 Jul 2026385
20 Jul 2026490
27 Jul 2026330
3 Aug 2026412
10 Aug 2026470
17 Aug 2026406
24 Aug 2026330
31 Aug 2026404
7 Sep 2026328
14 Sep 2026549
21 Sep 2026432
28 Sep 2026523
5 Oct 2026537
12 Oct 2026472
19 Oct 2026912
26 Oct 2026568
2 Nov 202683

Weekly downloads over the last 4 weeks are 15% above the 27-week average.

Healthier alternatives

Same job, rated Healthy, higher Canary Score and at least 10,000 installs. Never sponsored.

Blocks AnimationScore 93 · 90,000+Superb AddonsScore 93 · 80,000+Spectra BlocksScore 93 · 60,000+Gmap BlockScore 93 · 10,000+Twentig Supercharged Block EditorScore 92 · 20,000+

Facts

Version3.7.2
AuthorAlex Mills
Added10 Sep 2007
Last updated3 Mar 2025
Active installs20,000+
Requires WordPress5.7
Tested up to6.7.11
Requires PHP7.0
CategoryContent Management > Blog & Article Publishing
Tagsphp, code, source, sourcecode, syntax highlighting

Other plugins by this author: Regenerate Thumbnails, Registered Users Only, Add Descendants As Submenu Items, SmartCrop

Questions

Is SyntaxHighlighter Evolved still maintained?

No. Last release 3 Mar 2025, over 1 year ago.

Who owns SyntaxHighlighter Evolved, and has it changed hands?

No change recorded. Main committer fjorgemota since Dec 2023.

Was SyntaxHighlighter Evolved removed from wordpress.org?

No. Listed on wordpress.org as of 4 Nov 2026.

Is SyntaxHighlighter Evolved safe?

3 known vulnerabilities, all fixed (latest in 3.7.2). Not on the exploited list.

Is the latest SyntaxHighlighter Evolved update safe to install?

No ownership change before 3.7.2. No one-star spike after it.

Data: wordpress.org Plugins API, plugins SVN and Trac, wordpress.org reviews and support forum, Wordfence Intelligence, CISA KEV, NVD.Plugin data refreshed 4 Nov 2026.Report a data issue