WP Captcha PRO <= 5.38 — Missing Authorization to Authenticated (Subscriber+) Arbitrary File Upload
CVE-2026-5411Published · Updated Action summary
Affected: ≤5.38Update to 5.39 or newer
All remediation steps- Severity
- High8.8
- CVSS
- 8.8CVSS 3.1 · CNA (Wordfence)
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HWhat does this vector mean?
AV:NAttack vector- Network
AC:LAttack complexity- Low
PR:LPrivileges required- Low
UI:NUser interaction- None
S:UScope- Unchanged
C:HConfidentiality- High
I:HIntegrity- High
A:HAvailability- High
- Weakness
- CWE-434 Arbitrary File Upload
- Required access
- Unknown
- Exploit prediction (EPSS)
- No score
- CISA KEV
- Not listed
On this page8
Am I affected?
Advanced Google reCAPTCHA advanced-google-recaptcha
- Affected≤ 5.38
- Patched in5.39
Update to 5.39 or newer.
You are affected if you run ≤ 5.38. Version 5.39 and later are not affected by this issue.
- Check your version: in wp-admin go to Plugins → Installed Plugins and read the version under Advanced Google reCAPTCHA.
- No admin access? Run a passive check of your site. It reads public files only.
What to do
- Update to version 5.39, or a newer patched version
- Rotate administrator passwords and application secrets if the site ran a vulnerable version while publicly reachable.
- Watch Advanced Google reCAPTCHA to get an email when the next vulnerability is published.
Advisory
Source description from Wordfence Intelligence, credited to h0xilo.
The WP Captcha PRO (the premium version of the Advanced Google reCAPTCHA plugin, both have the same slug) plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file upload in all versions up to, and including, 5.38. This is due to a capability check in the save_ajax() function of the licensing module, combined with unrestricted file extraction in sync_cloud_protection(). This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level access and above, to upload arbitrary files including PHP webshells to the server by injecting a malicious cloud_protection_url into the license meta, which the plugin then downloads and extracts without file type validation into a web-accessible uploads directory. This can be used for remote code execution. Note: The vulnerability can only be exploited with a remote URL if "allow_url_fopen" is enabled in the php.ini config.
Exploits & references
Proof-of-concept & detection
No public proof-of-concept or detection template is known for this vulnerability.
Advisories & patches
- Advisorywordfence.com
Related CVEs
More in Advanced Google reCAPTCHA
All 6| Severity | Vulnerability | CVE | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium5.3 | Unauthenticated Login Protection Bypass ≤5.40Update to 5.41 | CVE-2026-100518 | |
| High8.8 | Authenticated (Subscriber+) Authentication Bypass via Temporary Login Link ≤5.38Update to 5.39 | CVE-2026-5415 | |
| Medium5.3 | Authenticated (Subscriber+) Limited SQL Injection via 'sSearch' Parameter ≤1.29Update to 1.30 | CVE-2025-2074 | |
| Medium5.3 | Built-in Math CAPTCHA Bypass ≤1.27Update to 1.28 | CVE-2025-1262 | |
| Medium5.3 | Brute Force Protection IP Unblock ≤1.25Update to 1.26 | CVE-2024-12034 |
- Medium5.3Unauthenticated Login Protection Bypass
≤5.40Update to 5.41
- High8.8Authenticated (Subscriber+) Authentication Bypass via Temporary Login Link
≤5.38Update to 5.39
- Medium5.3Authenticated (Subscriber+) Limited SQL Injection via 'sSearch' Parameter
≤1.29Update to 1.30
- Medium5.3Built-in Math CAPTCHA Bypass
≤1.27Update to 1.28
- Medium5.3Brute Force Protection IP Unblock
≤1.25Update to 1.26
Same weakness (Arbitrary File Upload)
All Arbitrary File Upload| Severity | Vulnerability | CVE | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| High7.2 | Unauthenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Comment User-Agent Header | CVE-2026-120688 | |
| Critical9.8 | Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Upload via File Upload via Public Form Submission | CVE-2026-125055 | |
| Critical9.8 | Unauthenticated PHP Object Injection to Remote Code Execution via 'form' Parameter | CVE-2026-119077 | |
| Medium5.3 | Unauthenticated Sensitive Information Exposure in 'search' Parameter | CVE-2026-121518 |
- High7.2Unauthenticated Stored Cross-Site Scripting via Comment User-Agent Header
EZ SQL Reports Shortcode Widget and DB Backup
≤5.25.25Update to 5.26.45
- Critical9.8Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Upload via File Upload via Public Form Submission
Chatterbug Forms – Fast, Flexible WordPress Form Builder
≤1.0.2Update to 1.1
- Critical9.8Unauthenticated PHP Object Injection to Remote Code Execution via 'form' Parameter
ELEX WordPress HelpDesk & Customer Ticketing System
≤3.3.9Update to 3.4.0
- Medium5.3Unauthenticated Sensitive Information Exposure in 'search' Parameter
Customer Reviews for WooCommerce
≤5.127.0Update to 5.128.0
Timeline
CVE published
Severity high, CVSS 8.8
Record last updated
Sources & licenses
Wordfence record- Vulnerability data
- Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. Licensed under the CC BY-SA 4.0.
- CVE® identifiers
- Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. Used under the CVE Program. CVE® is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation.
- CVSS / CWE
- National Vulnerability Database (NVD), shown unmodified. This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.
- VulnCrest content
- Summary, remediation guidance and page layout © VulnCrest. Not sourced from NVD.