CVE-2026-57797: EduMall Authorization Bypass Vulnerability

CVE-2026-57797 Overview

CVE-2026-57797 is a missing authorization vulnerability [CWE-862] in the ThemeMove EduMall WordPress theme. The flaw stems from incorrectly configured access control security levels within the theme's request handlers. Authenticated users with low privileges can invoke functionality that should be restricted, leading to unauthorized actions against theme resources.

The issue affects EduMall versions up to and including 4.5.1. Exploitation requires network access and low-privilege credentials but no user interaction. The impact is limited to availability, with no confidentiality or integrity effect according to the published CVSS vector.

Critical Impact
Authenticated attackers can bypass access control checks in EduMall to trigger restricted functionality and affect site availability.

Affected Products

ThemeMove EduMall WordPress theme
EduMall versions from n/a through <= 4.5.1
WordPress installations using the vulnerable EduMall theme

Discovery Timeline

2026-07-13 - CVE-2026-57797 published to NVD
2026-07-13 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-57797

Vulnerability Analysis

CVE-2026-57797 is a broken access control weakness classified under [CWE-862] Missing Authorization. The EduMall theme exposes handlers that do not verify whether the authenticated caller holds the capability required to execute the requested action. Any subscriber-level account registered on a WordPress site running EduMall can invoke these handlers directly.

The EPSS score of 0.24% (percentile 15.16) reflects a low current probability of exploitation activity. However, WordPress subscriber-level accounts are trivially obtainable on sites with open registration, lowering the practical barrier to abuse.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing capability and nonce validation on privileged operations exposed by the theme. The affected endpoints assume that authentication implies authorization, omitting explicit current_user_can() checks. This design flaw allows any authenticated session to reach code paths that should be limited to editors or administrators.

Attack Vector

An attacker first obtains a low-privilege account on a target WordPress site running EduMall <= 4.5.1. The attacker then issues crafted HTTP requests to the vulnerable theme endpoints. Because the handlers do not check the caller's role, the request executes and produces availability impact on the target site. Refer to the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for the endpoint details.

No verified public exploit code is available at this time.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-57797

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected POST or AJAX requests from low-privilege user sessions to EduMall theme endpoints under /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php or theme-specific handler paths.
WordPress audit log entries showing subscriber or customer accounts triggering theme actions normally reserved for editors or administrators.
Availability degradation or unexpected state changes correlated with authenticated requests from newly registered accounts.

Detection Strategies

Monitor web server access logs for authenticated requests to EduMall AJAX actions originating from accounts without corresponding administrative roles.
Deploy a WordPress activity log plugin to record capability-sensitive actions and flag events performed by low-privilege users.
Correlate spikes in new user registrations with subsequent requests to theme endpoints as a behavioral indicator.

Monitoring Recommendations

Alert on any HTTP 200 responses to EduMall theme AJAX actions where the authenticated session belongs to a subscriber or customer role.
Track patterns of rapid-fire requests from a single session against EduMall handlers, which may indicate abuse of the missing authorization flaw.
Baseline normal traffic to theme endpoints and alert on deviations following user registration events.

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-57797

Immediate Actions Required

Identify all WordPress sites running the ThemeMove EduMall theme and confirm the installed version.
Upgrade EduMall to a version later than 4.5.1 once the vendor releases a fixed release.
Restrict new user registration on affected WordPress sites until patching is complete.
Review existing low-privilege accounts for unexpected activity against EduMall endpoints.

Patch Information

The vulnerability affects EduMall through version 4.5.1. Consult the Patchstack Vulnerability Report for the latest fixed version guidance from ThemeMove. Apply theme updates through the WordPress admin dashboard or by replacing the theme directory with the patched release.

Workarounds

Disable the EduMall theme and switch to a non-vulnerable theme until an official patch is applied.
Use a web application firewall to block unauthenticated and low-privilege requests to EduMall theme AJAX actions.
Temporarily set users_can_register to false in WordPress general settings to prevent attacker-controlled account creation.
Enforce role-based access restrictions using a capability-management plugin to block subscriber roles from calling admin-ajax actions.

bash

# Configuration example: disable open registration via WP-CLI
wp option update users_can_register 0
wp theme list --status=active