CVE-2026-25336: Coachify Authorization Bypass Vulnerability

CVE-2026-25336 Overview

A Missing Authorization vulnerability has been identified in the Coachify WordPress theme developed by wpcoachify. This security flaw allows attackers to exploit incorrectly configured access control security levels, potentially enabling unauthorized actions within WordPress installations using the affected theme. The vulnerability stems from improper implementation of authorization checks (CWE-862), which can be leveraged remotely without authentication.

Critical Impact

Unauthenticated attackers can exploit broken access control to perform unauthorized actions on WordPress sites running vulnerable versions of the Coachify theme, potentially leading to service disruption.

Affected Products

• Coachify WordPress Theme versions up to and including 1.1.5
• WordPress installations using the vulnerable Coachify theme
• Sites with default or misconfigured access control settings

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-19 - CVE-2026-25336 published to NVD
• 2026-02-19 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-25336

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as a Missing Authorization issue (CWE-862), which occurs when a web application fails to perform proper authorization checks before allowing access to sensitive functionality or resources. In the context of the Coachify WordPress theme, certain functions or endpoints lack adequate permission verification, allowing any user—including unauthenticated visitors—to access restricted features.

The attack can be initiated remotely over the network without requiring any privileges or user interaction. While the vulnerability does not directly expose confidential data or allow data modification, it can be leveraged to cause service availability issues on affected WordPress installations.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the Coachify theme's failure to implement proper authorization checks on specific functionality. WordPress themes should validate user capabilities using functions like current_user_can() before executing privileged operations. The absence of these checks in Coachify versions 1.1.5 and earlier allows attackers to bypass intended access restrictions.

Attack Vector

The vulnerability is exploitable over the network, requiring no authentication, no special privileges, and no user interaction. An attacker can send specially crafted requests to the WordPress installation to trigger functionality that should be restricted to authorized users. The primary impact is on availability, potentially causing denial of service conditions by exhausting server resources or disrupting normal theme operations.

Exploitation typically involves:

1. Identifying WordPress installations using the Coachify theme
2. Discovering unprotected endpoints or AJAX actions
3. Sending requests to trigger restricted functionality without proper authorization

For detailed technical information about this vulnerability, refer to the Patchstack WordPress Vulnerability Database.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-25336

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual HTTP requests to Coachify theme-specific endpoints from unauthenticated sessions
• Increased server resource consumption without corresponding legitimate user activity
• Access log entries showing repeated requests to theme AJAX handlers without valid nonces
• Error logs indicating authorization failures or unexpected theme function executions

Detection Strategies

• Monitor WordPress access logs for suspicious patterns targeting Coachify theme endpoints
• Implement Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block unauthorized access attempts
• Review server logs for anomalous traffic patterns to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php with Coachify-related actions
• Deploy endpoint detection solutions to identify exploitation attempts in real-time

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging for WordPress AJAX requests and theme-specific actions
• Set up alerts for unusual activity patterns on WordPress installations using Coachify
• Regularly audit installed theme versions and compare against known vulnerable versions
• Monitor server performance metrics for unexpected resource utilization spikes

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-25336

Immediate Actions Required

• Identify all WordPress installations using the Coachify theme
• Check the installed version against the vulnerable range (versions through 1.1.5)
• Update to a patched version of the Coachify theme when available from the vendor
• Consider temporarily disabling or replacing the theme if no patch is available

Patch Information

This vulnerability affects Coachify WordPress theme versions from n/a through 1.1.5. Site administrators should check the Patchstack WordPress Vulnerability Database and the official Coachify theme repository for updated versions that address this security issue. Apply the latest theme update as soon as it becomes available from wpcoachify.

Workarounds

• Implement additional access control at the web server level using .htaccess or nginx configuration rules
• Deploy a WordPress security plugin with WAF capabilities to filter malicious requests
• Restrict access to WordPress admin functionality using IP whitelisting where feasible
• Consider using WordPress capability checks at the server level as an additional defense layer

# Example .htaccess configuration to restrict access to admin-ajax.php
# Add to WordPress .htaccess file for additional protection

<Files admin-ajax.php>
    # Allow legitimate AJAX requests from your domain
    <IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
        RewriteEngine On
        RewriteCond %{REQUEST_METHOD} POST
        RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^https?://(www\.)?yourdomain\.com [NC]
        RewriteRule .* - [F,L]
    </IfModule>
</Files>