Skip to main content

CF7 Upload Plugin EUVDEUVD-2026-63821

| CVE-2026-18781 HIGH
Code Injection (CWE-94)
2026-08-21 WPScan GHSA-rf4c-mm92-mpjf
8.1
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: WPScan
View

Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Identify WordPress site with public CF7 upload form
  2. Delivery
    Craft filename exploiting character-stripping bypass
  3. Exploit
    Submit form with PHP web shell payload
  4. Execution
    Locate uploaded file in wp-content/uploads
  5. Persist
    Request uploaded file URL
  6. Impact
    Execute arbitrary code as web server process

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization Code injection prevention, sandbox exec
MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques across 2 tactics: Execution, Initial Access

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

The target WordPress site must have the Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 plugin installed at a version below 1.3.9.9 and must have at least one Contact Form 7 form publicly accessible with a file upload field enabled - the upload field is not present by default in all CF7 forms and must be explicitly configured by the site administrator. The web server must execute PHP files located in the WordPress uploads directory (the default WordPress configuration does not restrict this). No authentication, session, or prior account is required from the attacker. Exploitation is limited to sites meeting these deployment conditions; sites without public upload-enabled CF7 forms are not reachable via this vector.

Impact

The CVSS 8.1 score with vector AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H reflects a genuine high-severity risk: no authentication and no user interaction are required, and successful exploitation yields full server compromise. The AC:H rating acknowledges that the attacker must craft a filename specifically suited to bypass the strip logic, which introduces real but not prohibitive complexity - especially since a publicly available proof-of-concept already encodes this technique, effectively collapsing the practical complexity for opportunistic attackers. No EPSS score was provided in the intelligence data; this is a notable gap. The absence of a CISA KEV listing means active mass exploitation is not yet confirmed, but the combination of a public POC, unauthenticated network access, and a very large WordPress plugin install base elevates the realistic threat well above what CVSS alone conveys. The S:U (scope unchanged) rating is appropriate since exploitation is bounded to the web server's PHP execution context. No conflicting signals exist between the CVSS vector and the description - both consistently indicate unauthenticated network exploitation with no user interaction.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker identifies a WordPress site running a public Contact Form 7 form with file upload capability enabled via this plugin. Using the publicly available proof-of-concept, they craft a filename where the plugin's character-stripping routine transforms the name into one ending in .php, then submit the form with a PHP web shell as the file payload. Once uploaded, the attacker directly requests the file's URL in the wp-content/uploads directory, achieving arbitrary server-side code execution under the web server's process account.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.

Alert me

AnalysisAIv1 – Aug 21, 2026

Remote code execution via file upload bypass in the Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 WordPress plugin (versions before 1.3.9.9) is exploitable by unauthenticated attackers against public-facing WordPress contact forms. The plugin strips certain characters from uploaded filenames as a sanitization step but fails to re-validate the resulting filename against its file type allowlist, enabling an attacker to craft a filename that survives stripping as a server-executable extension (e.g., PHP). A publicly available proof-of-concept exploit exists; a vendor patch is available at version 1.3.9.9 and should be applied immediately given the no-authentication, network-accessible attack surface.

RemediationAI

The primary fix is to update the plugin to version 1.3.9.9 or later via the WordPress plugin dashboard or direct download; the vendor patch is confirmed available per WPScan (https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/fb59519b-80ae-48e4-a31a-71d24ded205b/) and NVD (https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-18781). If immediate patching is not possible, the most effective compensating control is to disable the file upload feature within the Contact Form 7 form configuration, removing the attack surface entirely - this will break upload functionality for legitimate users. As a secondary control, configure the web server (Apache or nginx) to deny PHP execution within the WordPress uploads directory (wp-content/uploads) via a .htaccess rule or location block; this prevents uploaded PHP web shells from executing even if they bypass extension checks. Additionally, deploying a WAF rule to inspect Content-Type and filename extension mismatches on upload endpoints can detect exploitation attempts. Note that none of these compensating controls are a substitute for patching, as they each carry operational trade-offs.

Affected VersionsENISA

Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 0 <1.3.9.9

Affected Packages

euvd drag_and_drop_multiple_file_upload_for_contact_form_7 fix: 1.3.9.9

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

The vulnerability is rooted in CWE-94 (Code Injection) caused by an incomplete input validation pipeline in the file upload handler. The affected component is a WordPress plugin that extends Contact Form 7 with drag-and-drop file upload capability on public forms. The flaw is a classic two-stage sanitization bypass: the plugin strips disallowed characters or substrings from the uploaded filename but does not perform a second validation pass on the sanitized result. This allows an attacker to embed a forbidden extension (e.g., .php) within the filename in a way that the strip operation reveals it - for example, 'shell.ph.phpp' becomes 'shell.php' after stripping '.php' mid-string, or a double-extension trick like 'shell.jpg.php%00' where null-byte or character removal exposes the true extension. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:unknown:drag_and_drop_multiple_file_upload_for_contact_form_7 confirms the affected package is the standalone plugin, not Contact Form 7 core. Since WordPress typically stores uploads in web-accessible directories and the server executes PHP, a successfully uploaded web shell becomes directly reachable.

Know when Drag And Drop Multiple File Upload For Contact Form 7 gets its next vulnerability

  • Watch products and get an email when something new is published
  • Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

No credit card · 7-day full trial

Severity by source

Vendor (WPScan) PRIMARY 8.1 HIGH
AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 8.1 HIGH

Network-accessible public form, no auth or interaction needed, but crafting the bypass filename requires specific knowledge (AC:H); full server compromise on success justifies C/I/A:H.

3.1 AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (WPScan).

CVSS VectorVendor: WPScan

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
High
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

4
CVSS changed
Aug 21, 2026 - 13:22 NVD
8.1 (HIGH)
Patch available
Aug 21, 2026 - 07:16 EUVD
CVE Published
Aug 21, 2026 - 06:00 cve.org
HIGH 8.1
CVE Published
Aug 21, 2026 - 06:00 cve.org
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)

DescriptionCVE.org

The Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 WordPress plugin before 1.3.9.9 does not validate the final name of an uploaded file after stripping characters from it, allowing unauthenticated users to defeat its file type restrictions and execute arbitrary code on the server.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

The Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 WordPress plugin (versions before 1.3.9.9) contains a remote code execution vulnerability exploitable by unauthenticated attackers through contact form file uploads; publicly available exploit code exists. Affected organizations face immediate risk of complete website compromise, data theft, and reputational damage. This elevated risk demands urgent patching across all WordPress installations.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Vendor-released patch: 1.3.9.9

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 89% exploitable
Prevalence
High
popular WordPress Contact Form 7 file upload addon
Exploit
POC
Public exploit code exists
Social Media
1
Sightings
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

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.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC Yes
EPSS 0.2%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
No
Human Impact
High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

60
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +40
PoC: +20
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Malicious file upload attacks exploit insufficient validation when web applications accept user-provided files.

Code Injection CRITICAL

Code injection occurs when an application accepts user input and passes it directly into a language interpreter or evaluator without proper sanitization.

Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.

This site uses cookies essential for authentication and security. No tracking or analytics cookies are used. Privacy Policy