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AI Engine - Security Vulnerability (CVE-2026-16953)

CVE-2026-16953

The AI Engine WordPress plugin before 3.6.4 does not verify ownership of a guest's uploaded chatbot files before deletion, authorising the action solely by a client-supplied session cookie value, so an unauthenticated attacker who obtains a victim's session identifier and file reference can delete that victim's uploaded files.

CVE-2026-16953

MEDIUM CVSS 4.8 Published 2026-08-08 Updated 2026-08-26
AI Risk Moderate (48/100) Active Exploit: No strong signal Published Exploit: No public exploit references Priority: P4 Planned
Severity Band MEDIUM
CVSS Vector CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L
Affected Components 1
Reference Links 1
AI Risk Engine Moderate (48/100)
Exploitability Low
Active Exploitation No strong signal
Published Exploit Status No public exploit references

Threat Timeline

  1. 2026-08-08 CVE published and first recorded in the threat feed.
  2. 2026-08-26 Record updated with latest vulnerability metadata.
  3. 2026-08-12 AI technical context refreshed for mitigation and impact guidance.
  4. Now Monitoring for follow-up changes, linked references, and new related CVEs.

AI Context

Machine-generated threat intelligence

AI Updated 91 days ago

AI enriched 91 days ago (2026-08-12 21:03 UTC)

Technical Summary

The AI Engine WordPress plugin before 3.6.4 does not verify ownership of a guest's uploaded chatbot files before deletion, authorising the action solely by a client-supplied session cookie value, so an unauthenticated attacker who obtains a victim's session identifier and file reference can delete that victim's uploaded files.

Potential Impact

Severity is MEDIUM (CVSS 4.8). Depending on deployment context, affected components may be exposed to unauthorized actions or data integrity risk.

Exploitability Assessment

Exploitability is assessed as Low based on low-bar exploit prerequisites.

Primary risk drivers: low-bar exploit prerequisites

Mitigation Recommendations

Validate affected product versions, prioritize patching, and monitor references for vendor remediation guidance. If immediate patching is not possible, apply compensating controls and limit exposure of vulnerable surfaces.

Detection & Monitoring

Track authentication anomalies, unexpected file writes, and suspicious plugin API activity around affected components.

Business Impact Lens

AI risk score 48/100 (Moderate, Low) with priority P4 Planned. Prioritize remediation where affected components process customer data, admin sessions, or Internet-exposed workflows.

Affected Products

AI Engine PLUGIN · ai-engine Affected: < 3.6.4 Fixed in: 3.6.4

References

What to do about this

Patch promptly The consequence is significant even where an attacker needs a foothold first.

Fix it

Update AI Engine to 3.6.4 or later.

That is the complete fix. Everything below is what protects you in the meantime.

No Hack Halt control meaningfully contains this one — updating is the remedy. We would rather say so than sell you something that will not help.

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Not sure if you are affected?

Scan your site to see whether it runs AI Engine, and at which version.

Free, no installation, no account. It reads what your site already publishes, then tells you which plugins carry known vulnerabilities and what to do about each one.

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Am I affected by this vulnerability?

You are affected if your site runs AI Engine. Versions below 3.6.4 are vulnerable; that release and later are not. No account is needed to exploit this, so a public site is reachable by anyone.

How do I fix it?

Update AI Engine to version 3.6.4 or later. That is the complete fix.