Timeline Block <= 1.3.3 - Insecure Direct Object Reference to Authenticated (Author+) Private Timeline Exposure via Shortcode Attribute
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 1.3.4
- Affected Plugin
- Timeline Block – tell your story with elegant timelines
- Affected Version
<= 1.3.3- CVSS
- 4.3Medium
- Weakness type
- CWE-639 · Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key
- CVE
CVE-2026-1228
At a glance
CVE-2026-1228 is a medium-severity Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key vulnerability in the Timeline Block WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.3.3. It carries a CVSS score of 4.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Author level or above. The issue is fixed in version 1.3.4; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed February 2026, reported by Kazuma Matsumoto.
Vulnerability Overview
The Timeline Block – Beautiful Timeline Builder for WordPress (Vertical & Horizontal Timelines) plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Insecure Direct Object Reference in all versions up to, and including, 1.3.3 via the tlgb_shortcode() function due to missing validation on a user controlled key. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Author-level access and above, to disclose private timeline content via the id attribute supplied to the 'timeline_block' shortcode.
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-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key
Timeline Block <= 1.3.3 carries this weakness at timeline_block, and reaching it takes an account at Author level or above. Authorization bypass through a user-controlled key, often called insecure direct object reference, means the application looks up a record by an identifier from the request without checking that the caller owns it.
Changing a number in the request is enough to read or modify other users' records, which on commerce and membership sites means customer data. For Timeline Block the fix is 1.3.4: builds <= 1.3.3 are affected, anything from 1.3.4 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 1.3.4, 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: Timeline Block 1.3.4 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Other vulnerabilities in Timeline Block – tell your story with elegant timelines
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