PluginScore

Squiz.PHP.DiscouragedFunctions.Discouraged

Discouraged PHP function

The plugin uses a PHP or WordPress pattern that coding standards discourage.

medium weight

Why It Shows Up

Plugin Check found a discouraged function, forbidden function, goto, backtick operator, or similar construct.

Why It Matters

Discouraged patterns are often harder to review, less portable across hosts, or easier to misuse securely.

How to Fix

  • Identify why the construct is used and whether WordPress provides a safer API.
  • Replace shell execution, dynamic execution, or broad forbidden functions with constrained WordPress APIs.
  • If a third-party library triggers the warning, isolate and document it.

References

WordPress Coding Standards

Affected Plugins

RankPluginScoreErrorsWarningsInstallsAddedUpdatedTop Issue
#301Custom CSS247036571k+Output is not escaped
#302Custom Twitter Feeds – A Tweets Widget or X Feed Widget24446922100k+Output is not escaped
#303WP Customer Area243,30694110k+Text Domain Mismatch
#304Democracy Poll243874367k+Short PHP open tag found
#305Digital License Manager24295670700Non-prefixed hook name
#306Doubly – Cross Domain Copy Paste for WordPress242525510k+Output is not escaped
#307DSGVO All in one for WP24751,63720k+Non-prefixed global variable
#308Easy Form Builder by WhiteStudio — Drag & Drop Form Builder241943811k+Nonce verification recommended
#309Easy Modal245642997k+Unsafe printing function
#310E-cab Taxi Booking Manager for Woocommerce243561,4622k+Non-prefixed global variable
#311eCommerce Product Catalog Plugin for WordPress246213,1777k+Non-prefixed function
#312Email Subscribers & Newsletters – Email Marketing, Post Notifications & Newsletter Plugin for WordPress246521,49560k+Non-prefixed hook name
#313EmbedPress – PDF Embedder, 3D PDF FlipBook, Google Reviews, YouTube Videos, Upload & Embed PDF documents247111,588100k+Output is not escaped
#314Gutenberg Essential Blocks – Page Builder for Gutenberg Blocks & Patterns24120684200k+Non-prefixed global variable
#315Event Tickets and Registration243,4094,21790k+Non-prefixed global variable
#316Etsy Integration For WooCommerce241,2464,643900Non-prefixed global variable
#317F12 Profiler24282451500Direct Query
#318Fast Velocity Minify2428225640k+Unsafe printing function
#319Featured Post with thumbnail24158122400Output is not escaped
#320FeedWordPress244963199k+Missing Arg Domain
#321FluentCRM – Email Newsletter, Automation, Email Marketing, Email Campaigns, Optins, Leads, and CRM Solution2419375380k+Direct Query
#322Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder248261,314600k+Non-prefixed global variable
#323FV Player 8243231,3831k+Non-prefixed function
#324Photo Gallery – Responsive Image Galleries by Supsystic242409120k+Text Domain Mismatch
#325GD Mail Queue24502582700Output is not escaped
#326GEO my WP245542,0893k+Non-prefixed hook name
#327ExactMetrics – Google Analytics Dashboard for WordPress (Website Stats Plugin)24118442300k+Nonce verification recommended
#328Easy Google Maps241,76438920k+Non Singular String Literal Domain
#329HT Mega Addons for Elementor – Elementor Widgets & Template Builder2412,3521,47470k+Text Domain Mismatch
#330Import and export users and customers241,04035770k+Unsafe printing function
#331Infinite Uploads – Offload Media and Video to Cloud Storage24586722800Direct Query
#332Keap Official Opt-in Forms248291,0461k+Non-prefixed global variable
#333InstaWP Connect – 1-click WP Staging & Migration2425381140k+Non-prefixed global variable
#334Koko Analytics – Privacy-Friendly WordPress Analytics2416539360k+Short PHP open tag found
#335Appointment Booking Plugin – LatePoint | Calendar & Scheduling for WordPress241,855953100k+Output is not escaped
#336LifterLMS – WP LMS for eLearning, Online Courses, & Quizzes244141,17610k+Non-prefixed global variable
#337Event Booking Manager for WooCommerce – Registration, RSVP, Calendar & Tickets249692,1407k+Non-prefixed global variable
#338Generate Images (AI) – Magic Post Thumbnail241,9401,7616k+Non-prefixed global variable
#339Mang Board WP241,2134,7209k+Non-prefixed global variable
#340Media Library Folders2488980710k+Text Domain Mismatch
#341Timetable and Event Schedule by MotoPress2445623230k+Output is not escaped
#342MxChat – AI Chatbot & Content Generation for WordPress243,2301,4052k+Text Domain Mismatch
#343My WP Customize Admin/Frontend241,2492928k+Unsafe printing function
#344My Agile Privacy® – CMP, Cookie Consent & Privacy Tools241,1706747k+Text Domain Mismatch
#345Newsletter – Send awesome emails from WordPress248982,217200k+Non-prefixed global variable
#346Newsletter Subscription Form – User Subscriptions Form, Capture Email243858291k+Non-prefixed global variable
#347NEX-Forms – Ultimate Forms Plugin for WordPress242,0081,1956k+Text Domain Mismatch
#348Omnipress24169245800Non-prefixed global variable
#349Page Builder: Pagelayer – Drag and Drop website builder24769556400k+Output is not escaped
#350Paymob for WooCommerce243482885k+Text Domain Mismatch