Generate Security.txt <= 1.0.13 - Missing Authorization to Authenticated (Subscriber+) Security.txt Deletion via delete_securitytxt AJAX Action
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 1.0.14
- Affected Plugin
- Generate Security.txt
- Affected Version
<= 1.0.13- CVSS
- 4.3Medium
- Weakness type
- CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
- CVE
CVE-2026-9616
At a glance
CVE-2026-9616 is a medium-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the Generate Security.txt WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.0.13. It carries a CVSS score of 4.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Subscriber level or above. The issue is fixed in version 1.0.14; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed June 2026, reported by Benedictus Jovan (aillesiM).
Vulnerability Overview
The Generate Security.txt plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass in all versions up to, and including, 1.0.13. This is due to the plugin not properly verifying that a user is authorized to perform an action. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level access and above, to delete the site's security.txt file from the server filesystem or create the .well-known directory by directly invoking the delete_securitytxt or create_wellknown_folder AJAX actions.
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-862: Missing Authorization
Reaching this weakness in Generate Security.txt <= 1.0.13 takes an account at Subscriber level or above. A missing authorization check means a function is reachable by anyone who can reach the endpoint, because the code never asks whether the caller is allowed to perform the action.
Any user who can reach the endpoint gets to run an action reserved for higher-privileged roles, from reading protected data to changing settings or content. For Generate Security.txt the fix is 1.0.14: builds <= 1.0.13 are affected, anything from 1.0.14 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 1.0.14, 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: Generate Security.txt 1.0.14 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
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