CVE-2026-77830 cleantalk CVE debrief

Who should care

Defenders responsible for WordPress installations using the affected plugin versions should assess exposure and prioritize verification and potential remediation. This includes operators managing WordPress sites, platform administrators, vulnerability management teams, and security teams that need to verify exposure, assess the risk of script injection, and implement necessary controls to protect against this vulnerability.

Why it matters

CVE-2026-77830 allows authenticated attackers to inject arbitrary web scripts via comment content in the Spam protection, Honeypot, Anti-Spam by CleanTalk plugin for WordPress. Defenders should prioritize verifying exposure and assessing the risk of script injection.

• Defenders must verify exposure in WordPress installations using the affected plugin versions
• Risk of arbitrary script injection in pages with injected scripts requires assessment
• Additional monitoring for suspicious comment submissions and script execution may be necessary

Technical summary

The Spam protection, Honeypot, Anti-Spam by CleanTalk plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Comment Content aria-label Placeholder in all versions up to, and including, 6.86. This is due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping, allowing authenticated attackers with custom-level access and above to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user accesses an injected page.

Defensive priority

Defenders should prioritize verifying exposure in WordPress installations using the affected plugin versions and assess the risk of arbitrary script injection.

Recommended defensive actions

• Verify WordPress installations for the affected plugin versions and update to a patched version if available.
• Assess the risk of arbitrary script injection in pages with injected scripts.
• Implement additional monitoring for suspicious comment submissions and script execution.
• Review compensating controls for exposed systems while remediation is scheduled and verified.
• Check relevant monitoring, detection, and logs for exposed assets that need extra review.
• Track exceptions, retest remediated assets, and close the item only after evidence is documented.
• Confirm whether affected product deployments exist in managed environments and assign an owner for follow-up.

Evidence notes

The CVE record and NVD detail page provide information on the vulnerability, including its CVSS score of 7.2 and HIGH severity. The vulnerability is caused by insufficient input sanitization and output escaping in the plugin's comment content aria-label placeholder.

Sources and references

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.