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Easy Form Builder Flaw Allows Takeover

A critical vulnerability in a WordPress plugin allows unauthenticated users to gain full administrator access to affected websites.

··1 month ago·2 min read
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A severe security vulnerability discovered in the Easy Form Builder plugin for WordPress, identified as CVE-2026-13439, allows attackers to bypass standard authentication protocols. The flaw enables unauthenticated privilege escalation, granting external actors the ability to seize control of a site with administrator-level permissions.

The Mechanics of Escalation

The vulnerability exists within the plugin's password recovery workflow. Research indicates that the plugin utilizes a publicly visible session identifier, known as 'sid', as the primary token for password resets. This identifier is stored in the wp_emsfb_temp_links database table. Because the system relies on this publicly exposed value to validate the reset process, it creates a direct path for unauthorized modification of user credentials.

Adding to the risk is a publicly accessible nonce refresh endpoint. The Emsfb/v1/nonce/refresh endpoint provides valid WordPress REST nonces to any visitor, regardless of their authentication status. An attacker can scrape the public sid from a login form, trigger a recovery request for a targeted email address via the Emsfb/v1/forms/message/add endpoint, and finalize the account takeover by calling Emsfb/v1/forms/recovery/efb_set_password with the captured session identifier.

Quantifiable Security Impact

  • CVE-2026-13439 carries a CVSS 3.1 score of 9.8 (CRITICAL).
  • The vulnerability affects all plugin versions up to and including 4.0.11.
  • The exploit vector is defined as CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

Scope of Potential Compromise

The flaw is notable for the ease with which it can be exploited remotely without requiring any prior user permissions. By obtaining the sid from a published form and leveraging the insecure REST API endpoints, an attacker can set a new password for any user on the system. This includes accounts with administrator privileges, effectively granting the attacker full control over the affected WordPress installation. The vulnerability was officially documented and published on 2026-07-21T06:16:28.060.

Implications for System Integrity

This vulnerability highlights a critical breakdown in how password reset tokens are handled within the plugin's architecture. Because the 'sid' is treated as a secure token despite being publicly visible, the security of any user account, particularly high-privilege administrative roles, is directly exposed to anyone capable of submitting a REST API request. The reliance on publicly accessible endpoints to facilitate sensitive operations like password changes suggests that websites utilizing versions of this plugin through 4.0.11 are vulnerable to complete unauthorized account takeover if the plugin remains active.

#wordpress#privilege escalation#cve-2026-13439#whitestudio#vulnerability

Sources

  • NVD Original source

Iliyas

Founder & Editor, Xploitwire

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