Image Optimizer <= 1.7.4 — Authenticated (Author+) Arbitrary File Deletion via Post Meta Field Injection

Am I affected?

• Check your version: in wp-admin go to Plugins → Installed Plugins and read the version under Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF.
• No admin access? Run a passive check of your site. It reads public files only.

What to do

1. Update to version 1.7.5, or a newer patched version
2. Rotate administrator passwords and application secrets if the site ran a vulnerable version while publicly reachable.
3. Watch Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF to get an email when the next vulnerability is published.

Advisory

Source description from Wordfence Intelligence, credited to Dmitrii Ignatyev.

The Image Optimizer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion in versions up to and including 1.7.4. This is due to insufficient path validation in the Image_Backup::remove() function where backup file paths stored in post meta are used directly in file deletion operations without verifying they are within the uploads directory. The plugin stores backup file paths in the image_optimizer_metadata post meta field and trusts these paths completely when deleting backups on the delete_attachment hook. An authenticated attacker with Author-level access can edit the image_optimizer_metadata post meta on their own attachments via WordPress's Custom Fields interface, injecting arbitrary absolute file paths into the backups array. When the attacker subsequently deletes the attachment, the plugin calls File_System::delete() on each path without validation. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Author-level access and above, to delete arbitrary files on the server within the web server's filesystem permissions, potentially leading to denial of service, data loss, or security degradation.

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

Timeline

1. Jul 1, 2026

   CVE published

   Severity high, CVSS 8.1

2. Nov 13, 2026

   Record last updated