Is this finding itself dangerous?

Not directly — nothing is exposed. Its danger is what it hides: while update checks fail, every 'needs an upgrade' finding on this site silently stops appearing, so a quiet scan report is not a clean one. Fix it soon precisely because it makes other problems invisible.

What usually causes it?

Outbound connections from the server to api.wordpress.org failing: a host firewall blocking egress, DNS misconfiguration, a proxy requirement, or rarely WordPress.org rate-limiting the host's shared IP. The Wordfence Diagnostics page tests connectivity and usually names the failing hop.

It comes and goes. Should I care about an intermittent one?

Intermittent failures are usually the host's network or a saturated shared server rather than your configuration. Once is noise; a pattern is worth a support ticket to the host, because those same failed outbound requests also delay plugin updates and mail.

Glossary · Vulnerability

WordPress could not check for updates

Wordfence type: wfUpgradeError
Category: Vulnerability
Severity: Usually Low, but worth chasing

The site failed to reach WordPress.org to determine whether updates are available.

Written by G. Schad, Cybersecurity Specialist Published 2026-07-31 · Updated 2026-08-22

The alert usually reads

Wordfence could not check whether plugins or themes are out of date because the update check failed.

What Wordfence found

WordPress asks WordPress.org what the current versions are. This finding means that request failed — commonly a blocked outbound connection, a DNS failure, or a host firewall.

Why it matters

A site that cannot check for updates will never tell anyone it is out of date, so every other update finding becomes unreliable. It is a low-severity item that quietly undermines your ability to trust the rest of the report.

How to fix it

1Check outbound HTTPS from the server to api.wordpress.org.
2Look for WP_HTTP_BLOCK_EXTERNAL in wp-config.php, and add api.wordpress.org to WP_ACCESSIBLE_HOSTS if it is set.
3Ask the host whether outbound requests are restricted.
4Re-run the scan once connectivity is restored so the update findings become trustworthy again.

Common questions

Is this finding itself dangerous?: Not directly — nothing is exposed. Its danger is what it hides: while update checks fail, every 'needs an upgrade' finding on this site silently stops appearing, so a quiet scan report is not a clean one. Fix it soon precisely because it makes other problems invisible.
What usually causes it?: Outbound connections from the server to api.wordpress.org failing: a host firewall blocking egress, DNS misconfiguration, a proxy requirement, or rarely WordPress.org rate-limiting the host's shared IP. The Wordfence Diagnostics page tests connectivity and usually names the failing hop.
It comes and goes. Should I care about an intermittent one?: Intermittent failures are usually the host's network or a saturated shared server rather than your configuration. Once is noise; a pattern is worth a support ticket to the host, because those same failed outbound requests also delay plugin updates and mail.

How WPSecureOps treats it

The connector reports this as wfUpgradeError. WPSecureOps files it under Vulnerability and bands it by the numeric severity Wordfence assigns, so findings of this kind from every site you manage arrive in one queue rather than one email per site. Titles and descriptions are stripped of HTML and the site's absolute path is replaced before anything leaves the server.

Primary references

Product behaviour and remediation guidance were checked against these primary sources.