What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-15988?

CVE-2026-15988 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 (High). CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.2%.

Which versions of AI Engine WordPress are affected by CVE-2026-15988?

The AI Engine WordPress plugin (versions 3.6.5 and earlier) contains a CSRF vulnerability that enables unauthenticated attackers to create new administrator accounts on affected websites, resulting…

How to fix or mitigate CVE-2026-15988?

Within 24 hours, inventory all WordPress installations running AI Engine version 3.6.5 or earlier and immediately disable the plugin on all affected instances as a containment measure. Within 7 days, audit authentication and WordPress access logs for unexpected admin account creation events, and implement IP-based access restrictions on /wp-admin and /wp-json paths to authorized office networks only. Within 30 days, upgrade to a patched version of AI Engine once released by the vendor, or migrate to an alternative WordPress plugin with active security maintenance and equivalent functionality.

AI Engine WordPress CVE-2026-15988

EUVD-2026-51739 HIGH

Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) (CWE-352)

2026-08-01 Wordfence

GHSA-rw28-999g-8cc4

WordPress Authentication Bypass CSRF Wordpress Plugin Ai Engine The Chatbot Ai Framework Mcp For Wordpress Tigroumeow

8.8

CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: Wordfence

Severity by source

Vendor (Wordfence) PRIMARY

8.8 HIGH

AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

vuln.today AI

8.8 HIGH

Attacker needs no account (PR:N), admin must click a link (UI:R), and full site compromise results; scope unchanged as impact stays within the WordPress instance.

3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H

Primary rating from Vendor (Wordfence).

CVSS VectorVendor: Wordfence

Attack Vector

Network

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

None

User Interaction

Required

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Lifecycle Timeline

Analysis Generated

Aug 01, 2026 - 08:21 vuln.today

CVE Published

Aug 01, 2026 - 06:48 cve.org

HIGH 8.8

DescriptionCVE.org

The AI Engine - The Chatbot, AI Framework & MCP for WordPress plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Cross-Site Request Forgery in all versions up to, and including, 3.6.5 This is due to missing or incorrect nonce validation on the reauth_for_authorize function. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to create new administrator accounts with attacker-supplied credentials via a CSRF-based REST authentication bypass, granted they can trick a site administrator into performing an action such as clicking on a link. This bypass can be combined with WordPress's ?_method=POST method-override support to convert a top-navigation GET request into an authenticated POST to the REST users endpoint, requiring no existing account on the attacker's part.

AnalysisAI

Cross-Site Request Forgery in AI Engine plugin (all versions ≤ 3.6.5) enables unauthenticated attackers to create new WordPress administrator accounts by tricking a logged-in site admin into clicking a crafted link. The attack exploits missing nonce validation on the reauth_for_authorize function in labs/mcp-oauth.php, combined with WordPress's built-in ?_method=POST method-override feature to convert an innocuous-looking GET navigation request into an authenticated POST to the REST /users endpoint - no attacker account required. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, but the attack primitive is straightforward and the impact (full site takeover) is severe.

Technical ContextAI

The vulnerability resides in the MCP OAuth flow of the AI Engine plugin (CPE: cpe:2.3:a:tigroumeow:ai_engine_-_the_chatbot,_ai_framework_&_mcp_for_wordpress:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*), specifically in labs/mcp-oauth.php at lines 49, 120, 121, and 127 as referenced by Wordfence and Trac sources. CWE-352 (Cross-Site Request Forgery) is the root cause: the reauth_for_authorize function processes requests without verifying a WordPress nonce, breaking the standard CSRF defense that WordPress plugins are expected to implement. The novel escalation technique abuses WordPress core's ?_method=POST query-parameter method override - a legitimate REST API compatibility feature - which causes WordPress to reinterpret an HTTP GET request as a POST, allowing the forged request to satisfy the REST endpoint's method requirement while still originating from an admin's authenticated browser session. This combination turns a classic CSRF into a full REST authentication bypass that creates attacker-controlled admin credentials.

RemediationAI

Update AI Engine to version 3.6.6 or later immediately; the fix is confirmed in the Trac changeset at https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset/3628188/ai-engine/trunk/labs/mcp-oauth.php, which patches the nonce validation in the reauth_for_authorize function. The fix version 3.6.6 is inferred from the diff between 3.6.5 and 3.6.6 tags - verify the exact release designation in the WordPress plugin repository before deploying. If upgrading immediately is not possible, a targeted workaround is to disable or block access to the MCP OAuth feature (the labs/mcp-oauth.php endpoint) via server-level rules (e.g., Nginx location block or Apache RewriteRule) - note this will break any MCP/OAuth integrations relying on that path. Additionally, consider temporarily blocking ?_method=POST query parameters at the WAF or CDN layer for unauthenticated requests, but be aware this may break legitimate REST API consumers using method-override. Audit WordPress administrator accounts for unexpected additions as an indicator of prior exploitation.