CVE-2026-18216

Backup Migration <= 2.1.6 - Authenticated (Administrator+) Privilege Escalation

2026-08-13 00:00

Strategic Overview

Status: Patched in 2.1.7
Affected Plugin: Backup Migration
Affected Version: <= 2.1.6
CVSS: 4.7Medium
Weakness type: CWE-269 · Improper Privilege Management
CVE: CVE-2026-18216

View all Backup Migration vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2026-18216 is a medium-severity Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in the Backup Migration WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 2.1.6. It carries a CVSS score of 4.7 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Administrator level or above. The issue is fixed in version 2.1.7; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed August 2026, reported by Thanh Lam Tang.

Vulnerability Overview

The Backup Migration plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 2.1.6. This is due to insufficient restriction on the capabilities a user may grant themselves. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with administrator-level access and above, to elevate their privileges beyond those intended for their role.

Technical Analysis

The vector marks this flaw as remotely reachable over the network, with low attack complexity — no special timing or configuration is needed, and no interaction from a victim user.

CWE-269: Improper Privilege Management

Reaching this weakness in Backup Migration <= 2.1.6 takes an account at Administrator level or above. Improper privilege management means the code lets an account end up with capabilities its role should not have.

It converts a low-privileged account into an administrative one, which makes every other restriction on the site irrelevant. For Backup Migration the fix is 2.1.7: builds <= 2.1.6 are affected, anything from 2.1.7 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 2.1.7, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

Because it turns on account access, WordSec's login security is the relevant layer: role-based two-factor, captcha and brute-force limits raise the cost of getting the account this needs. None of that substitutes for the fix: Backup Migration 2.1.7 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

Login Security
Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-18216 https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/9d69213f-a730-46bd-b1ae-3940fa463f97 https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-18216

Related records

Other vulnerabilities in Backup Migration

CVSS Vector

4.7

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Base

Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges RequiredHigh
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
ConfidentialityLow
IntegrityLow
AvailabilityLow

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