CVE-2026-19848 Overview
CVE-2026-19848 affects the ProfilePress WordPress plugin in versions prior to 4.17.1. The plugin fails to strip shortcodes from two of its profile fields before rendering them on public pages. Unauthenticated attackers can store shortcodes in these fields, which then execute when a visitor views the page. Successful exploitation discloses a chosen user's email address, login name, and registration date. The flaw is classified under [CWE-74] as improper neutralization of special elements in output.
Critical Impact
Unauthenticated attackers can inject stored shortcodes into ProfilePress profile fields, leading to disclosure of arbitrary WordPress user email addresses, logins, and registration dates.
Affected Products
- ProfilePress WordPress plugin versions before 4.17.1
- WordPress sites using ProfilePress registration and profile features
- Public-facing profile pages rendered by ProfilePress
Discovery Timeline
- 2026-08-21 - CVE-2026-19848 published to NVD
- 2026-08-26 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2026-19848
Vulnerability Analysis
ProfilePress exposes user-controlled profile fields that accept content from unauthenticated visitors during registration. Two of these fields pass user input through WordPress rendering without invoking strip_shortcodes() before output. When another user or administrator views the resulting profile page, WordPress evaluates the stored shortcodes server-side. This allows an attacker to leverage built-in ProfilePress shortcodes that reference arbitrary user IDs and print sensitive account attributes.
The attack does not require authentication, user interaction beyond page rendering, or elevated privileges. It abuses the intended shortcode evaluation pipeline rather than script execution, so browser-side XSS mitigations do not block it.
Root Cause
The root cause is missing output sanitization on two profile fields. WordPress executes any shortcode contained in post or user content when it is rendered through the_content or equivalent filters. ProfilePress writes attacker-supplied field values directly into rendered output without first calling strip_shortcodes() or escaping the square-bracket syntax. This is a classic instance of improper neutralization of special elements ([CWE-74]).
Attack Vector
An unauthenticated attacker registers or submits a profile with malicious shortcode content in one of the two vulnerable fields. The shortcode references a target user ID and requests attributes such as email, login, or registration date. When any visitor loads the public profile page, WordPress evaluates the shortcode server-side and returns the target user's data in the response. The attacker then retrieves the disclosed values by requesting the same page.
Refer to the WPScan Vulnerability Report for technical details on the affected fields and shortcodes.
Detection Methods for CVE-2026-19848
Indicators of Compromise
- Profile field values in the ProfilePress database tables containing square-bracket shortcode syntax such as [ followed by ProfilePress shortcode names.
- Public profile pages that render unexpected user email addresses, logins, or registration dates belonging to other accounts.
- New registrations from anonymous sources immediately followed by page views of the created profile.
Detection Strategies
- Query the WordPress usermeta and ProfilePress-specific tables for stored values matching a regex like \[[a-z0-9_-]+ .*user_id= in profile fields.
- Inspect web server access logs for POST requests to ProfilePress registration or profile edit endpoints followed by GET requests to the resulting profile URL.
- Compare rendered profile page output against expected field content to detect server-side shortcode expansion.
Monitoring Recommendations
- Enable WordPress audit logging on user registration, profile update, and usermeta write operations.
- Alert on anonymous account creations that populate free-text profile fields with bracket characters.
- Monitor outbound responses from profile pages for the presence of email addresses that do not belong to the profile owner.
How to Mitigate CVE-2026-19848
Immediate Actions Required
- Upgrade the ProfilePress plugin to version 4.17.1 or later on all WordPress sites.
- Audit existing ProfilePress profile fields for stored shortcode payloads and remove any malicious entries.
- Rotate credentials for any accounts whose email addresses may have been disclosed to unauthenticated visitors.
Patch Information
The vendor addressed CVE-2026-19848 in ProfilePress 4.17.1 by stripping shortcodes from the affected profile fields before rendering. Site administrators should apply the update through the WordPress plugin manager or WP-CLI. See the WPScan Vulnerability Report for advisory details.
Workarounds
- Disable public rendering of ProfilePress profile pages until the plugin is updated.
- Restrict registration to authenticated administrators using a temporary access control rule at the reverse proxy or WAF.
- Add a WAF signature that blocks square-bracket characters in submissions to ProfilePress registration and profile update endpoints.
# Update ProfilePress using WP-CLI
wp plugin update wp-user-avatar --version=4.17.1
wp plugin list --name=wp-user-avatar --fields=name,status,version
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
