CVE-2026-13010 Overview
CVE-2026-13010 is a time-based SQL Injection vulnerability [CWE-89] affecting the JoomSport – for Sports: Team & League, Football, Hockey & more plugin for WordPress. The flaw exists in all plugin versions up to and including 5.7.9. It stems from insufficient escaping of the user-supplied event shortcode attribute and inadequate preparation of the underlying SQL query. Authenticated users with Contributor-level access or above can append arbitrary SQL statements to existing queries and extract sensitive database contents. Because Contributor-level users can embed shortcodes in posts or pages, this materially lowers the barrier for exploitation on multi-author WordPress sites.
Critical Impact
Authenticated Contributor-level attackers can execute time-based SQL Injection to exfiltrate database contents, including credentials and session data stored in WordPress tables.
Affected Products
- JoomSport – for Sports: Team & League, Football, Hockey & more plugin for WordPress
- All versions up to and including 5.7.9
- WordPress sites permitting Contributor-level or higher user registration
Discovery Timeline
- 2026-07-10 - CVE-2026-13010 published to NVD
- 2026-07-10 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2026-13010
Vulnerability Analysis
The JoomSport plugin exposes a shortcode handler that accepts an event attribute and passes it into a SQL query executed against the WordPress database. The plugin fails to escape the attribute value and does not use prepared statements with parameter binding. As a result, an authenticated attacker can inject SQL fragments through the event attribute when rendering the shortcode inside a post or page. The vulnerability is time-based, meaning attackers infer data by measuring response delays produced by functions such as SLEEP() or BENCHMARK(). This class of injection allows systematic extraction of arbitrary database contents one bit at a time.
Root Cause
The root cause is a classic Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command issue [CWE-89]. The affected shortcode handler concatenates the user-controlled event parameter directly into a raw SQL string rather than using the $wpdb->prepare() method with placeholders. Relevant code paths are visible in the plugin's WordPress Plugin Shortcode File and the WordPress Player Class File.
Attack Vector
An attacker with Contributor-level access authenticates to the target WordPress site and creates or edits a post containing the vulnerable JoomSport shortcode. The attacker supplies a malicious payload as the event attribute value. When the shortcode is rendered, the injected SQL is appended to the existing query and executed against the database. Time-based conditional payloads let the attacker enumerate table contents, including wp_users hashes and wp_usermeta session tokens. See the Wordfence Vulnerability ID entry for additional context.
No verified exploit code is publicly available.
Refer to the vendor advisory and Wordfence threat intelligence entry for technical indicators.
Detection Methods for CVE-2026-13010
Indicators of Compromise
- Draft or published posts authored by Contributor-level accounts containing JoomSport shortcodes with unusual event attribute values, including SQL keywords such as SLEEP, BENCHMARK, UNION, or SELECT.
- Web server access logs showing repeated requests to pages containing JoomSport shortcodes with abnormally long response times.
- Database query logs showing malformed or extended queries originating from the JoomSport plugin execution path.
Detection Strategies
- Inspect WordPress post content in the wp_posts table for shortcodes matching JoomSport patterns combined with SQL syntax in attribute values.
- Enable and review MySQL slow query logs to identify queries containing time-delay functions triggered by shortcode rendering.
- Correlate Contributor-level authentication events with post creation and page render timing anomalies.
Monitoring Recommendations
- Enable WordPress audit logging for post creation, edits, and role changes involving Contributor and Author accounts.
- Deploy a Web Application Firewall (WAF) with rules that flag SQL Injection payloads in shortcode attributes.
- Monitor for spikes in HTTP response latency on pages using JoomSport shortcodes.
How to Mitigate CVE-2026-13010
Immediate Actions Required
- Update the JoomSport plugin to a version released after 5.7.9 that addresses this issue, per the WordPress Plugin Change Log.
- Audit all Contributor, Author, Editor, and Administrator accounts and remove any unnecessary or dormant users.
- Review recent posts and pages for suspicious shortcode usage and remove any injected content.
- Rotate WordPress administrative credentials and any secrets that may have been stored in the database.
Patch Information
The vendor addressed the vulnerability in a subsequent release tracked in the plugin's changeset repository. Administrators should upgrade to the latest available version of the JoomSport plugin and validate that the shortcode handler now uses $wpdb->prepare() with parameterized placeholders. Refer to the WordPress Plugin Change Log for the fix commit.
Workarounds
- Disable the JoomSport plugin until it can be updated on all affected WordPress installations.
- Restrict Contributor-level and higher registration to trusted users only, and disable open user registration.
- Configure a Web Application Firewall to block SQL Injection patterns in POST parameters submitted to wp-admin/post.php and wp-admin/post-new.php.
- Remove Contributor privileges from accounts that do not require content creation capabilities.
# Disable the JoomSport plugin via WP-CLI as a temporary workaround
wp plugin deactivate joomsport-sports-league-results-management
# Verify plugin status
wp plugin status joomsport-sports-league-results-management
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
