CVE-2026-115807 cozmoslabs CVE debrief

Who should care

Defenders responsible for WordPress installations with the User Profile Builder plugin should assess exposure and prioritize remediation. This includes reviewing the current version of the plugin, restricting access to registration forms, and monitoring for suspicious account creation activity.

Why it matters

The User Profile Builder plugin for WordPress has a Limited Privilege Escalation vulnerability, allowing authenticated attackers to create new accounts with elevated privileges.

• Authenticated attackers with Author-level access can create new accounts with the Editor role
• Vulnerable installations may allow privilege escalation, potentially leading to unauthorized access

Technical summary

The User Profile Builder plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Limited Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 4.0.3. This is due to the Gutenberg Register block passing the attacker-controlled Assigned Role attribute directly into the [wppb-register] shortcode without server-side authorization. The role guard in the form builder only downgrades roles that carry the manage_options or remove_users capability, leaving the Editor role and other privileged non-Administrator roles completely unrestricted.

Defensive priority

Defenders should prioritize verifying exposure and remediating vulnerable installations.

Recommended defensive actions

• Verify the version of the User Profile Builder plugin and upgrade to a patched version if necessary
• Restrict access to the plugin's registration forms to prevent unauthorized use
• Monitor for suspicious account creation activity
• 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 vulnerability is due to the Gutenberg Register block passing the attacker-controlled Assigned Role attribute directly into the [wppb-register] shortcode without server-side authorization. The role guard in the form builder only downgrades roles that carry the manage_options or remove_users capability, leaving the Editor role and other privileged non-Administrator roles completely unrestricted. This allows authenticated attackers with Author-level access and above to create new WordPress accounts bearing the Editor role (or any

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.