CVE-2026-4314

The Ultimate WordPress Toolkit – WP Extended <= 3.2.4 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Privilege Escalation via Menu Editor Module

2026-03-21 14:34
bashu

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 3.2.5
Affected Version
<= 3.2.4
CVSS
8.8High
Weakness type
CWE-269 · Improper Privilege Management
CVE
CVE-2026-4314
View all WP Extended – The Ultimate WordPress Toolkit vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2026-4314 is a high-severity Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in the WP Extended WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 3.2.4. It carries a CVSS score of 8.8 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality, integrity, availability impact). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Subscriber level or above. The issue is fixed in version 3.2.5; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed March 2026, reported by bashu.

Vulnerability Overview

The 'The Ultimate WordPress Toolkit – WP Extended' plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 3.2.4. This is due to the `isDashboardOrProfileRequest()` method in the Menu Editor module using an insecure `strpos()` check against `$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI']` to determine if a request targets the dashboard or profile page. The `grantVirtualCaps()` method, which is hooked into the `user_has_cap` filter, grants elevated capabilities including `manage_options` when this check returns true. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level access and above, to gain administrative capabilities by appending a crafted query parameter to any admin URL, allowing them to update arbitrary WordPress options and ultimately create new Administrator accounts.

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. A successful exploit has high impact on confidentiality, integrity, availability — full site compromise territory.

CWE-269: Improper Privilege Management

WP Extended <= 3.2.4 carries this weakness at REQUEST_URI, and reaching it takes an account at Subscriber 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 WP Extended the fix is 3.2.5: builds <= 3.2.4 are affected, anything from 3.2.5 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 3.2.5, 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: WP Extended 3.2.5 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Login Security
  • Alerts

External References

Related records

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