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Ivory Search EUVDEUVD-2026-91880

| CVE-2026-92243 MEDIUM
Cross-site Scripting (XSS) (CWE-79)
2026-10-03 Wordfence GHSA-fhf6-3c94-w2q4
6.1
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: Wordfence
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Attack ChainAIDerived

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

  1. Access
    Craft malicious 's' parameter URL
  2. Delivery
    Lure victim to click link
  3. Exploit
    Payload reflected in highlighted search results
  4. Execution
    Script executes in victim browser
  5. Impact
    Session/credential theft or redirect

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization Output encoding, context-aware escaping
MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques across 2 tactics: Initial Access, Execution

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

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires THREE specific conditions, all drawn from the description: (1) the plugin's 'Highlight Search Terms' option must be explicitly enabled by an administrator - this is a non-default feature, so sites without it are not vulnerable; (2) the attacker-supplied search query in the 's' parameter must return at least one matching published post, otherwise the payload is not reflected in the highlight path; and (3) a victim must be socially engineered into opening the crafted search URL (UI:R). These factors - operator-enabled configuration, content-dependent reflection, and required user interaction - substantially limit realistic exploitation despite the unauthenticated network vector.

Impact

This is a textbook reflected XSS (CWE-79) carrying a MEDIUM severity rating (CVSS 6.1, CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N). The network vector and lack of required privileges (PR:N) make it reachable by unauthenticated remote attackers, but several signals temper the real-world risk. UI:R means a victim must be lured into clicking a crafted link, so there is no self-propagating or automatable mass-exploitation path. More importantly, the description adds two preconditions NOT reflected in the CVSS vector: the targeted search form must have the non-default 'Highlight Search Terms' option enabled by an administrator, AND the malicious query must return at least one post result. These constraints make the effective attack complexity higher than the AC:L in the official vector suggests - reflected XSS in a non-default, result-dependent code path is meaningfully narrower than a default-config bug. No EPSS score, no KEV listing, and no public POC were provided, so there is no evidence of active or impending exploitation; this reads as a routine advisory-driven finding rather than an urgent priority. Signal conflict to note: the official AC:L does not account for the config/result preconditions in the description - a defender should treat practical exploitability as lower than the raw score implies.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

On a WordPress site running Ivory Search ≤5.5.18 with the 'Highlight Search Terms' option enabled, an attacker crafts a URL with a malicious payload in the 's' search parameter that also matches at least one published post. The attacker distributes this link (e.g., via phishing or a malicious post/comment); when a victim clicks it, the unsanitized search term is reflected and the injected script executes in the victim's browser session. No public exploit code was identified in the provided data.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
No patch listed yet 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 03, 2026

Reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) in the Ivory Search - WordPress Search Plugin, affecting all versions up to and including 5.5.18, allows unauthenticated attackers to inject arbitrary web scripts via the 's' search parameter. However, exploitation requires three specific conditions: the non-default 'Highlight Search Terms' option must be enabled by an administrator, the malicious search query must return at least one post result, and a victim must be socially engineered into opening a crafted URL. These factors significantly limit realistic exploitation, and our assessment adjusts attack complexity to High despite the base CVSS score of 6.1 (Medium). No public exploit code is known at this time.

RemediationAI

Upgrade to Ivory Search version 5.5.19 or later, which is the next release after the affected 5.5.18 and is available in the WordPress plugin repository (https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/add-search-to-menu/tags/5.5.19). If immediate upgrade is not possible, disable the 'Highlight Search Terms' option in the plugin settings to remove the vulnerable reflection path, though this sacrifices the search term highlighting functionality. Additionally, consider using a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to block malicious 's' parameter payloads, but be aware that WAF rules may not cover all encoding variations and can cause false positives. The Wordfence advisory (linked above) provides further mitigation guidance.

Affected VersionsENISA

Ivory Search – WordPress Search Plugin 0 ≤5.5.18

Affected Packages

euvd ivory_search_wordpress_search_plugin no fix

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 a classic reflected cross-site scripting (CWE-79) arising from insufficient input sanitization and output escaping in the Ivory Search plugin's handling of the 's' parameter. When the 'Highlight Search Terms' feature is active, the plugin reflects the search query into the page without proper encoding, as evidenced by the code in public/class-is-public.php (lines 114 and 139) and public/js/is-highlight.js (line 23). The affected component is identified by CPE cpe:2.3:a:vinod-dalvi:ivory_search_-_wordpress_search_plugin. Because the reflection occurs only when the search returns at least one result, the attack requires a query that matches existing content, adding a content-dependent condition. The unauthenticated network vector (AV:N, PR:N) combined with required user interaction (UI:R) and scope change (S:C) contribute to the CVSS 6.1 base score, though our assessment raises AC from Low to High due to the three prerequisites.

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Severity by source

Vendor (Wordfence) PRIMARY 6.1 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
vuln.today AI 4.7 MEDIUM

Unauthenticated and network-reachable (PR:N/AV:N) but AC:H because exploitation depends on the non-default 'Highlight Search Terms' setting and a query returning a result; reflected XSS yields limited C/I impact with scope change.

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

Primary rating from Vendor (Wordfence).

CVSS VectorVendor: Wordfence

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

DescriptionCVE.org

The Ivory Search - WordPress Search Plugin plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Reflected Cross-Site Scripting via the 's' parameter in all versions up to, and including, 5.5.18 due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user accesses an injected page. Exploitation requires that the targeted search form has the 'Highlight Search Terms' option enabled by an administrator, and that the malicious search query returns at least one post result.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 90% exploitable
Prevalence
Medium
popular WordPress search plugin, common but not universally deployed
Data Quality
6 sources
Confidence: High

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 MEDIUM
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.2%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)
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· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium
Technical Impact
Partial

Priority Score

30
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +30
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Cross-Site Scripting occurs when an application accepts untrusted data and sends it to a web browser without proper validation or encoding.

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