Pasted AI code into WordPress? We’ll make it safe.
ChatGPT, Claude or Copilot wrote you a snippet, a plugin or a chunk of functions.php. It worked, until an update broke it, the site slowed down, or a security scanner lit up. We review, fix or properly rebuild AI-written WordPress code, without judgement, and tell you in plain English what it was doing.
★★★★★ Rated on Trustpilot & Google · WordPress developers since 2006
It worked on Tuesday. Then WordPress updated.
AI is good at writing WordPress code that runs. It is much worse at writing code that keeps running, stays secure, and plays nicely with the other forty plugins on your site. These are the calls we get.
“There has been a critical error”
The white screen, or WordPress’s polite version of it, after a core, theme or plugin update. Usually a function that no longer exists, or two snippets fighting over the same hook.
The site got slow
Snippets that query the database on every page load, call an API without caching, or run on the admin and front end when they only needed one. Nobody told the AI about performance.
A security scanner flagged it
Wordfence, Patchstack or your host’s malware scan has found something in a file you pasted. Sometimes a false alarm; often an unsanitised input or a hardcoded key.
It works, and that worries you
You built a booking rule, a price calculator or a form integration from prompts. It does the job. You have no idea whether it is safe to leave on a live site with customer data.
Your developer won’t touch it
Agencies and freelancers often refuse to work on AI-generated code they did not write. We will. We review it first, then tell you honestly whether to fix it or replace it.
The feature keeps breaking
Every fix prompt breaks something else. You are twelve conversations deep, the snippet is 400 lines, and you have lost track of what it actually does.
The eight mistakes we find in almost every AI-written snippet
None of these are exotic. They are the things an experienced WordPress developer does by reflex and a language model skips because nobody asked.
No permission checks
Admin actions, AJAX handlers and REST routes that anyone on the internet can call, because the code never asks “is this user allowed to do this?”
No nonces
Forms and actions without the one-time tokens WordPress uses to stop cross-site request forgery. A link in an email can make a logged-in admin do something they never intended.
Raw database queries
Values from the URL or a form dropped straight into SQL. This is the classic SQL injection hole, and it is the single most common thing we find.
Unescaped output
User data printed into the page without escaping, which is how cross-site scripting gets in. Veracode found AI code failed this test 86% of the time.
Secrets in the code
API keys, passwords and tokens typed into the file itself, often then committed to a public repository or left in a readable upload folder.
Hallucinated or deprecated functions
Functions that sound like WordPress but do not exist, or were removed three versions ago. Works until the next update, then the critical error screen.
Runs everywhere, all the time
Hooked to init with no conditions, so it executes on every request, including the admin, REST and cron. Multiply by your traffic.
Lives in the wrong place
Pasted into the parent theme’s functions.php, where the next theme update deletes it. Or spread across five snippets that depend on each other in an order nobody documented.
And the thing it was supposed to do
Beyond security, we check that it actually does what you asked for, including the edge cases the AI did not think of: refunds, time zones, empty carts, two users at once.
Custom code is where WordPress sites actually get hurt
WordPress core is well defended. Almost every real incident starts in a plugin or a piece of custom code, which is exactly what a pasted snippet is: an unaudited plugin with no update channel.
11,300+ WordPress vulnerabilities disclosed in 2025
Up around 42% on the year before. Roughly 96% were in plugins rather than core, and nearly half had no patch when they were made public.
45% of AI-generated code tasks introduced a known vulnerability
Across 100+ language models and 80 tasks. Cross-site scripting and log injection were the most common failures, both routine in WordPress snippets.
Has no maintainer, no changelog and no one checking it
A plugin from the directory gets patched when a problem is found. A pasted snippet does not. It sits there until it breaks or someone finds the hole.
The standards WordPress itself is written to
Capability checks, nonces, prepared statements, escaped output, secrets in configuration, hooks scoped to where they are needed. The same checklist we run on our own production plugins.
Pick the one that matches where you are
Not sure? Send us the code and a sentence about what is happening. We will tell you which one applies and quote it fixed.
Emergency fix
The critical error screen, a blank site, a checkout that stopped, or a host or scanner warning. We get in via the host or FTP, isolate the offending code, restore the site, and tell you what happened.
- Same-day response in working hours
- Site back up first, tidy-up second
- Root cause explained in plain English
- Pairs with hacked site recovery if it has gone further
Code review & hardening
You send the snippets or plugin. We read every line against the WordPress security and coding standards, fix what is unsafe, remove what is unnecessary, and hand back code with a short written report.
- Written findings, each rated and explained
- Security fixes applied, not just listed
- Performance and update-safety checked
- Moved out of functions.php into a proper plugin
Rebuild as a proper plugin
When the snippet has grown into a feature your business relies on, patching is false economy. We take what it does as the spec and rebuild it as a documented, standards-compliant plugin you own.
- Same behaviour, written properly
- Settings screen instead of editing code
- Survives theme and core updates
- Covered by a care plan if you want it
From “something’s wrong” to fixed and explained
Send us the code
Paste it, zip it, or give us access to the site. Add a line on what it was meant to do and what is happening now. That is all we need to quote.
Review & fixed quote
We read it, run it on a staging copy, and come back with what is wrong, how serious, and a fixed price to put it right. If it is fine, we say so and charge nothing.
Fix or rebuild on staging
Changes are made on a copy of your site, tested against your theme, plugins and the current WordPress version, never live first.
Deploy & explain
We move it live, remove the old code, and send a short plain-English note on what changed and how to use it. Optional care plan if you want it watched.
- Every line read by a human
- Fixed on staging first
- Security standards applied
- Findings explained in plain English
We are not here to tell you off
We use AI to write code every day. The difference is that a developer who knows WordPress reads what it produces before it goes anywhere near a live site. That review is the service, and it is cheap compared with a breach or a dead checkout.
If you want to keep prompting your own features, we will happily review them as you go, and we can give you a short brief to paste into your prompts that gets the AI writing safer WordPress code in the first place.
Capability check on every admin action, AJAX handler and REST route.
Nonce verified on every form submission and state-changing link.
Every query prepared, every input sanitised, every output escaped.
No secrets in code. Keys live in wp-config or encrypted options.
Hooks scoped to the request that needs them, with caching where anything is fetched.
Lives in a plugin, not the theme, so updates cannot delete it.
Plugins and tooling we run in production ourselves
The checklist we apply to your snippet is the one we apply to code taking real orders on our own platforms every day. A few of the things it has produced.
What to send us
You do not need to understand the code. Send what you have and we will come back with what it does, what is wrong with it, and a fixed price to sort it.
If the site is down, skip the list and call. If the code is sensitive we will sign an NDA before we read it. If it turns out to be fine, there is no charge for the look.
- The codePasted into the form, a zip of the plugin, or the name of the snippet in Code Snippets or WPCode. Screenshots are fine if that is easier.
- What it was meant to doOne or two sentences. The original prompt you gave the AI is ideal if you still have it.
- What is happening nowThe error message, the scanner warning, the slow page, or just “I’m not sure it’s safe”.
- Where it livesfunctions.php, a child theme, a snippets plugin, a custom plugin, or Elementor’s custom code area.
- Site access, when you are readyAn admin login or host access for the staging copy. Not needed for the quote, and only ever used from our own IPs.
Where this fits with the rest
Custom plugin development
When you know what you need and want it built properly from the start. Plugin development.
Vibe code to WordPress
Built a whole app on Lovable, Bolt or Replit rather than a snippet? That is a different job. Vibe code rebuilds.
Hacked site recovery
If the hole has already been used: cleaned, warnings lifted, hardened. Hacked site recovery.
Performance tuning
When the snippet is fixed but the site is still slow for other reasons. Performance tuning.
WordPress care plans
Updates tested, backups taken, someone watching, so the next update is not a surprise. Care plans.
Elementor services
Custom code inside Elementor-built sites, fixed by people who work with it daily. Elementor services.
AI-written WordPress code questions
Can you fix a WordPress plugin that ChatGPT wrote?
Yes. Send us the plugin or snippet and a line about what it should do. We review it against WordPress security and coding standards, fix what is wrong, and explain the changes. Code from Claude, Gemini, Copilot, Cursor or any other tool is handled the same way.
My site shows “There has been a critical error on this website”. Is that the snippet?
Very often, especially if it appeared straight after an update. It usually means the code calls a function that no longer exists or has a syntax error. We can get in through your host, disable the offending code, bring the site back and then fix it properly on a staging copy.
Is AI-generated code actually dangerous, or is that scaremongering?
It depends entirely on what it does. A snippet that changes a button colour is harmless. One that touches the database, handles form input, calls an API or runs for logged-in users needs the same checks a professional plugin gets, and AI tools routinely skip them. Independent testing found nearly half of AI-generated code introduced a known vulnerability. We tell you which category yours is in.
Will you judge me for using AI to write it?
No. We use it ourselves. Getting a working feature from a prompt is a sensible thing to do; the missing step is having someone who knows WordPress read it before it goes live. That is all we are adding.
Should I fix the snippet or have it rebuilt?
Short, simple snippets are usually worth fixing. Once a snippet has grown into a feature the business depends on, with settings, data and several moving parts, rebuilding it as a proper plugin is cheaper over a year than patching it every time something changes. We will recommend one and quote both if it is borderline.
Can you move my code out of functions.php?
Yes, and we usually do. Code in a parent theme’s functions.php is deleted by the next theme update. We package it as a small plugin, or a child theme where that is more appropriate, so it survives updates and can be switched off in one click if ever needed.
Do you work with Code Snippets, WPCode and similar plugins?
Yes. They are a reasonable home for small, well-written snippets. We review what is in them, remove duplicates and dead code, and move anything substantial into a proper plugin.
Do you need access to my site?
Not to quote. For the fix we work on a staging copy, which needs either an admin login or host access, used only from our own IP addresses and removed when we are done. If you prefer, you can apply the fixed code yourself from what we send back.
How quickly can you look at it?
Reviews are usually turned around within a few working days. If the site is down or a scanner has flagged something, tell us and we treat it as an emergency with a same-day response in working hours.
How much does it cost?
It depends on how much code there is and what it touches. A single snippet review is a modest, fixed fee; a rebuild of a feature-sized plugin is quoted as a small development job. Either way the figure is fixed in writing before we start, and if the code turns out to be fine there is no charge.
Looking for something bigger? Built a whole application with AI rather than a snippet, on Lovable, Bolt, v0 or Replit? See our vibe code to WordPress service →
Keep the feature. Lose the worry.
Send us the code and a sentence about what is happening. Within one working day you will know what it does, whether it is safe, and what it costs to put right.
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