The User Profile Builder is a plugin used in WordPress sites to manage user profiles and registrations, mainly used by website administrators who need advanced profile editing capabilities. This tool is widely used across different industries, including e-commerce and online communities, where website owners need to handle a large number of users. It is appreciated for its customizable features that integrate seamlessly with WordPress environments. Businesses and individuals use it to streamline user creation and profile management, offering features such as front-end registration and login forms. As a product that deals heavily with user roles and permissions, ensuring its secure operation is critical for maintaining site integrity. Given its prevalent use, any vulnerabilities can have significant implications, especially when tied to user authentication.
This scanner detects vulnerabilities related to unauthorized access in web applications. Unauthorized Admin Access specifically provides potential for attackers to gain privileged access to systems without proper credentials. This vulnerability can compromise the security of an application and its data, posing significant risks. It involves bypassing authentication protocols, often as a result of flawed security design in user management systems. Such vulnerabilities threaten to undermine trust and security assurances that applications promise to their users. Addressing this vulnerability is paramount for maintaining the reliability and security posture of the application.
The vulnerability exploited here is a type confusion vulnerability associated with the User Profile Builder plugin, where an authentication bypass can be performed. The key step involves exploiting a flaw where WP_Error objects are erroneously coerced into integers by the absint() function. This bypass effectively allows unauthenticated attackers to log in as administrators due to an improper handling of return values. Critical receiving endpoints include user registration handlers intended for authenticating users and assigning correct permissions. Unchecked, this allows unauthorized users full access to administrative functionality, leading to a potentially total site takeover.
The exploitation of this vulnerability allows attackers to assume full control over a WordPress site running the affected User Profile Builder version. Malicious users can install or remove plugins and themes, execute arbitrary PHP code, and completely compromise the site's integrity. This poses a substantial risk, potentially leading to data breaches, corruption, or loss of data. Additionally, such access could be used to launch further attacks from the compromised site, impacting reputations and operational capabilities of the affected entity.
REFERENCES
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/9f606fba-f779-42ea-a160-6c3b20dc5e79
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/profile-builder/tags/3.16.4/front-end/class-formbuilder.php#L262
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/profile-builder/tags/3.16.4/features/functions.php#L1481
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset/3609855/profile-builder
- https://github.com/HORKimhab/CVE-2026-15826-CVE-2026-15748
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-15826
- Update User Profile Builder to version 3.16.5 or later, ensuring it adheres to user input validation norms.
- Enable and configure security plugins that monitor for unauthorized login attempts and block them preemptively.
- Adopt multi-factor authentication to provide additional security to admin accounts.
- Regularly review and audit plugin settings and code for possible security weaknesses.
- Consider hiring a cybersecurity expert to assess the security of the entire WordPress installation and harden configurations.
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