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CVE-2026-16149

Status: DeferredHigh (8.8)—

The Security Hardener plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Missing Authorization in all versions up to, and including, 2.4.4. The vulnerability exists because the plugin's user-enumeration protection, which is enabled by default, hooks the rest_endpoints filter via secure_user_endpoints() and overwrites every registered handler's permission_callback on both the /wp/v2/users and /wp/v2/users/(?P<id>[\d]+) routes — including POST, PUT, PATCH, and DELETE handlers — with a bare closure that returns only is_user_logged_in(), completely stripping WordPress Core's original capability checks such as create_users, promote_user, edit_users, and delete_users that WP_REST_Users_Controller normally enforces. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access and above to create new Administrator accounts by sending POST request to /wp/v2/users with administrator role, or to reset an existing Administrator's password by issuing a PUT/POST request to /wp/v2/users/<id>. Because the block_user_enum option defaults to enabled, no special plugin configuration is required — the overwrite is active on every request as soon as the plugin is installed.

CVSS

Exploitation probability (EPSS)

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System, FIRST) estimates how likely a vulnerability is to be exploited in the wild within 30 days. It complements CVSS (impact) and CISA KEV (confirmed exploitation).

🎯 ATT&CK techniques

How this vulnerability is exploited and what the attacker gains, in MITRE ATT&CK terms.

Acceso remoto autenticado (PR:L) a endpoints REST de WordPress que eliminan controles de permisos originales, permitiendo crear cuentas admin y modificar contraseñas de usuarios existentes.

Inferred by our analysis agent from the official description, CVSS vector and CWE, and checked by a supervisor. May contain errors.

🛡️ ATT&CK mitigations that cover these techniques

Threat Intelligence ProgramPrivileged Account ManagementNetwork SegmentationDisable or Remove Feature or ProgramApplication Isolation and SandboxingExploit Protection

Affected technologies (1)

⚠ AI-inferred from the description — NVD hasn't analyzed this CVE yet, these aren't verified CPEs.

Security Hardener — Security HardenerAI

CWEs

References

Raw JSON (NVD)

Show
{
  "id": "CVE-2026-16149",
  "cveTags": [],
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          "options": [
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  "published": "2026-08-23T00:16:50.233",
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      "url": "https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset/3630896/security-hardener",
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    }
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  "lastModified": "2026-08-24T19:16:36.143",
  "sourceIdentifier": "security@wordfence.com"
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