Description
The User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 4.0.3 via the `role` parameter handled by the `wppb_add_meta_to_user_on_activation()` function. The vulnerability exists because the activation handler passes the attacker-supplied role value directly to `WP_User::set_role()` with no allow-list validation, and the 4.0.3 reserved-name check exempts pre-existing form fields from the block, allowing a legacy field with meta-name `role` to persist and bridge attacker-controlled request input into the serialized signup record stored in `wp_signups`. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to gain a fully activated WordPress administrator account by submitting `role=administrator` through the public `[wppb-register]` shortcode form and subsequently clicking the confirmation activation link. Exploitation requires the site to have a legacy form field with meta-name `role` carried over from before the 4.0.3 upgrade, email confirmation enabled, and open user registration — all stable site-state conditions once established.
Published: 2026-10-16
Score: 8.1 High
EPSS: n/a
KEV: No
AI Analysis

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Remediation

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Tracking

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Advisories

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History

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 05:45:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description The User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 4.0.3 via the `role` parameter handled by the `wppb_add_meta_to_user_on_activation()` function. The vulnerability exists because the activation handler passes the attacker-supplied role value directly to `WP_User::set_role()` with no allow-list validation, and the 4.0.3 reserved-name check exempts pre-existing form fields from the block, allowing a legacy field with meta-name `role` to persist and bridge attacker-controlled request input into the serialized signup record stored in `wp_signups`. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to gain a fully activated WordPress administrator account by submitting `role=administrator` through the public `[wppb-register]` shortcode form and subsequently clicking the confirmation activation link. Exploitation requires the site to have a legacy form field with meta-name `role` carried over from before the 4.0.3 upgrade, email confirmation enabled, and open user registration — all stable site-state conditions once established.
Title User Profile Builder <= 4.0.3 - Unauthenticated Privilege Escalation to 'role' Parameter via Legacy Meta-Name Collision on [wppb-register]
Weaknesses CWE-269
References
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 8.1, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H'}

Subscriptions

No data.

cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: Wordfence

Published:

Updated: 2026-10-16T05:30:24.704Z

Reserved: 2026-10-12T16:12:22.990Z

Link: CVE-2026-109447

cve-icon Vulnrichment

No data.

cve-icon NVD

Status : Received

Published: 2026-10-16T06:17:08.020

Modified: 2026-10-16T06:17:08.020

Link: CVE-2026-109447

cve-icon Redhat

No data.

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

No data.

Weaknesses
  • CWE-269

    Improper Privilege Management