CVE-2026-39595

W3 Total Cache <= 2.9.1 - Missing Authorization

2026-03-12 00:00

Strategic Overview

Status: Patched in 2.9.2
Affected Plugin: W3 Total Cache
Affected Version: <= 2.9.1
CVSS: 4.3Medium
Weakness type: CWE-862 · Missing Authorization
CVE: CVE-2026-39595

At a glance

CVE-2026-39595 is a medium-severity Missing Authorization vulnerability in the W3 Total Cache WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 2.9.1. It carries a CVSS score of 4.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). The root cause is a missing authorization check on a reachable function. The issue is fixed in version 2.9.2; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed March 2026, reported by Muhammad Sharief.

Vulnerability Overview

The W3 Total Cache plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access due to a missing capability check on a function in versions up to, and including, 2.9.1. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with author-level access and above, to perform an unauthorized action.

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 W3 Total Cache <= 2.9.1 takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. 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 W3 Total Cache the fix is 2.9.2: builds <= 2.9.1 are affected, anything from 2.9.2 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 2.9.2, 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: W3 Total Cache 2.9.2 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

Login Security
Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-39595 https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/8441e5f2-cff0-4f6c-a584-861650f5a121 https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-39595

Related records

Same weakness class

Other vulnerabilities in W3 Total Cache

CVSS Vector

4.3

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

Base

Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges RequiredLow
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
ConfidentialityNone
IntegrityLow
AvailabilityNone

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