Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessRegister low-privilege WordPress account
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DeliveryAuthenticate to target site
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ExploitInvoke flawed privilege-assignment logic
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ExecutionEscalate role to administrator
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ImpactFull site compromise
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A06:2025 - Insecure Design
ASVS 5.0
V8 - Authorization Privilege assignment review
|
| Exploitation Conditions | Requires an authenticated account with at least a low-privilege role (PR:L) on a WordPress site running the Profile Builder plugin version n/a through 4.0.4; no user interaction is needed (UI:N) and the attack is network-reachable (AV:N). The practical limiting factor is obtaining that initial account - this is significantly eased on the many Profile Builder deployments that enable open/self user registration, in which case an attacker can create their own foothold. The exact feature or code path that performs the incorrect privilege assignment is not described in the available sources, so whether a specific configuration or registration mode is required cannot be confirmed from the input. |
| Impact | This is a genuine priority-tier issue rather than an inflated high-CVSS number. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N) describes a network-reachable, low-complexity flaw requiring only low-level authentication (PR:L) and no user interaction, with full High impact to confidentiality, integrity and availability - consistent with a privilege-escalation path from a weak account (e.g., subscriber) to administrator on a WordPress site. The vuln.today decision label is 'this_week', indicating prioritized remediation but not emergency. However, several exploitation signals are MISSING: there is no EPSS probability provided, no CISA KEV listing, and no SSVC automatable/technical-impact decision data in the input, so real-world exploitation likelihood cannot be quantified from these sources. The only reference is the Patchstack database advisory, which is a PoC/advisory reference and is not verified as working exploit code. Net: the structural risk is high (authenticated-to-admin escalation in a widely-used plugin, and many Profile Builder sites permit open user registration, lowering the PR:L barrier in practice), but active-exploitation evidence is absent at time of analysis. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker registers or obtains a low-privilege account (such as subscriber) on a WordPress site running Profile Builder ≤4.0.4 - trivial where self-registration is enabled - then abuses the incorrect privilege assignment to grant themselves an administrator-level role. With admin access they can install plugins, modify content, and fully compromise the site. A public PoC/advisory reference exists at Patchstack; it is not verified as working exploit code, and the precise trigger is not described in the available sources. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 22, 2026
Privilege escalation in Cozmoslabs Profile Builder through 4.0.4 allows an authenticated low-privilege user to raise their own level of access, with high impact on confidentiality, integrity and availability (CVSS 8.8, CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). The practical barrier is obtaining an initial account, which is materially lowered on WordPress sites that enable open self-registration, since an attacker can then create their own low-privilege foothold and escalate from it. There is no public exploit identified at time of analysis, and the vendor-published Patchstack record is the only reference available; the priority label places it in this week's remediation queue rather than an emergency response.
RemediationAI
The available data does not identify a fixed release or vendor patch for this issue, so the first step is to check the Patchstack record and the Cozmoslabs plugin page or changelog for a release above 4.0.4 and, once one exists, update the plugin as the complete fix. Because exploitation starts from a low-privilege account and the assessed conditions note that open self-registration significantly eases obtaining one, the most effective interim measure is to disable or restrict public user registration and any front-end profile creation that hands out accounts, accepting that this breaks self-service signup flows; where registration must stay open, force the lowest possible default role and audit newly created accounts for unexpected capability changes. Review existing users for roles or capabilities that do not match their intended function, since successful exploitation would have already altered them, and deactivate and remove the plugin entirely on sites that do not use its registration or profile features, which eliminates the exposure at the cost of losing those front-end functions. Given the this_week priority label, schedule these actions within the current remediation cycle rather than deferring them.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
Profile Builder is a WordPress plugin from Cozmoslabs that extends user registration, profile editing and role-related front-end workflows on top of the WordPress user and capability model. The flaw is classified as CWE-266, Incorrect Privilege Assignment, meaning the code assigns a role or capability to a user in a way that grants more authority than intended; within WordPress this class typically manifests as an under-constrained role assignment during registration or profile update. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:cozmoslabs:profile_builder:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* with a version ceiling of 4.0.4 indicates every release up to and including that version is in scope, with no narrower version boundary published. The CVSS vector confirms network reachability, no user interaction and a low-privilege authenticated actor (PR:L) as the prerequisite; the specific function, hook or configuration that performs the incorrect assignment is not described in the available sources, so whether a particular registration mode or profile field is required cannot be confirmed from this input.
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Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Network-reachable privilege escalation needing only a low-privilege account (PR:L) and no interaction; successful escalation to admin yields full C/I/A impact within the WordPress scope.
Primary rating from Vendor (Patchstack).
CVSS VectorVendor: Patchstack
DescriptionCVE.org
Incorrect Privilege Assignment vulnerability in Cozmoslabs Profile Builder profile-builder allows Privilege Escalation.This issue affects Profile Builder: from n/a through 4.0.4.
Executive ViewAI
CVE-2026-112242 is a high-severity privilege escalation flaw in the Cozmoslabs Profile Builder plugin (through version 4.0.4) used on our WordPress sites. Any authenticated low-privilege user can elevate their own access, potentially compromising the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of site data and functionality. This is especially concerning for any WordPress installation that permits open self-registration, as attackers can easily create an account and exploit the flaw.
No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis. Interim mitigations: disable the Profile Builder plugin if feasible; otherwise, disable open self-registration, enforce strict user role management, and monitor for privilege escalation attempts.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.
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EUVD-2026-108067
GHSA-3hgf-c6f4-mhjq
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB