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CMB2 - Security Vulnerability (CVE-2026-80338)

CVE-2026-80338

Vulnerability CVE-2026-80338 PLUGIN cmb2 MEDIUM

The CMB2 WordPress plugin before 2.13.0 does not perform any capability check on one of its AJAX actions, allowing users with a role as low as Subscriber to create arbitrary WordPress options and corrupt existing ones, which can break core site settings and take the site offline. Exploitation requires the site's or another CMB2 WordPress plugin before 2.13.0 to have declared an oEmbed field, as the CMB2 WordPress plugin before 2.13.0 registers none of its own. The stored value is never attacker-controlled, so the issue does not lead to privilege escalation.

CVE-2026-80338

MEDIUM CVSS 6.8 Published 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-24
AI Risk Elevated (58/100) Active Exploit: No strong signal Published Exploit: No public exploit references Priority: P3 Priority
Severity Band MEDIUM
CVSS Vector CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H
Affected Components 3
Reference Links 1
AI Risk Engine Elevated (58/100)
Exploitability Medium
Active Exploitation No strong signal
Published Exploit Status No public exploit references

Threat Timeline

  1. 2026-09-24 CVE published and first recorded in the threat feed.
  2. 2026-09-24 Record updated with latest vulnerability metadata.
  3. 2026-10-01 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 just now

AI enriched just now (2026-10-01 13:08 UTC)

Technical Summary

The CMB2 WordPress plugin before 2.13.0 does not perform any capability check on one of its AJAX actions, allowing users with a role as low as Subscriber to create arbitrary WordPress options and corrupt existing ones, which can break core site settings and take the site offline. Exploitation requires the site's or another CMB2 WordPress plugin before 2.13.0 to have declared an oEmbed field, as the CMB2 WordPress plugin before 2.13.0 registers none of its own. The stored value is…

Potential Impact

Severity is MEDIUM (CVSS 6.8). Depending on deployment context, affected components may be exposed to unauthorized actions or data integrity risk.

Exploitability Assessment

Exploitability is assessed as Medium based on severity and technical exposure profile.

Primary risk drivers: severity and technical exposure profile

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 58/100 (Elevated, Medium) with priority P3 Priority. Prioritize remediation where affected components process customer data, admin sessions, or Internet-exposed workflows.

Affected Products

CMB2 PLUGIN · cmb2 Affected: < 2.13.0 Fixed in: 2.13.0
efore 2.13.0 to have declared an oEmbed field, as the CMB2 PLUGIN · efore-2-13-0-to-have-declared-an-oembed-field-as-the-cmb2 Affected: < 2.13.0 Fixed in: 2.13.0
ing ones, which can break core site settings and take the site offline. Exploitation requires the site's or another CMB2 PLUGIN · ing-ones-which-can-break-core-site-settings-and-take-the-site-offline-exploitation-requires-the-site-s-or-another-cmb2 Affected: < 2.13.0 Fixed in: 2.13.0

References

What to do about this

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

Fix it

Update CMB2 to 2.13.0 or later.

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

Cannot update today? Unauthorised administrator detection in Hack Halt ProSecure blocks this class of attack before WordPress processes the request.

Alert when a new administrator appears or a role is escalated. Creating a hidden admin is the most common persistence step after a WordPress compromise.

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Not sure if you are affected?

Scan your site to see whether it runs CMB2, 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 CMB2. Versions below 2.13.0 are vulnerable; that release and later are not.

How do I fix it?

Update CMB2 to version 2.13.0 or later. That is the complete fix. Until you can update, Unauthorised administrator detection in Hack Halt ProSecure contains this class of attack at the request layer.

What can an attacker actually do?

This is a Privilege Escalation flaw. An attacker who exploits it can raise a low-privilege account, or none at all, to administrator.

WordPress security that blocks attacks before they land.

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