Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors <= 4.15.0 — Authenticated (Author+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via 'profile_fields_user_email_value_prefix' Parameter
CVE-2026-85657Published · Updated Action summary
Affected: ≤4.15.0Update to 4.16.0 or newer
All remediation steps- Severity
- Medium5.4
- CVSS
- 5.4CVSS 3.1 · CNA (Wordfence)
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:NWhat does this vector mean?
AV:NAttack vector- Network
AC:LAttack complexity- Low
PR:LPrivileges required- Low
UI:RUser interaction- Required
S:CScope- Changed
C:LConfidentiality- Low
I:LIntegrity- Low
A:NAvailability- None
- Weakness
- CWE-79 Cross-Site Scripting
- Required access
- Unknown
- Exploit prediction (EPSS)
- 0.2% chance in 30 days14th percentile
- CISA KEV
- Not listed
On this page8
Am I affected?
Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors publishpress-authors
- Affected≤ 4.15.0
- Patched in4.16.0
Update to 4.16.0 or newer.
You are affected if you run ≤ 4.15.0. Version 4.16.0 and later are not affected by this issue.
- Check your version: in wp-admin go to Plugins → Installed Plugins and read the version under Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors.
- No admin access? Run a passive check of your site. It reads public files only.
What to do
- Update to version 4.16.0, or a newer patched version
- Rotate administrator passwords and application secrets if the site ran a vulnerable version while publicly reachable.
- Watch Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors to get an email when the next vulnerability is published.
Advisory
Source description from Wordfence Intelligence, credited to Athiwat Tiprasaharn (Jitlada).
The Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via the ‘profile_fields_user_email_value_prefix’ parameter in all versions up to, and including, 4.15.0 due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Author-level access and above, to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user clicks on a link.
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 Co-Authors, Multiple Authors and Guest Authors in an Author Box with PublishPress Authors
All 8| Severity | Vulnerability | CVE | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium6.4 | Authenticated (Subscriber+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via display_name profile-sync into author term name ≤4.17.0Update to 4.18.0 | CVE-2026-111592 | |
| Medium6.4 | Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting ≤4.17.0Update to 4.18.0 | CVE-2026-115610 | |
| Medium5.3 | Missing Authorization ≤4.10.1Update to 4.11.0 | CVE-2026-25309 | |
| Medium4.3 | Missing Authorization ≤4.10.1Update to 4.11.0 | CVE-2026-25330 | |
| High8.8 | Authenticated (Contributor+) Local File Inclusion ≤4.7.5Update to 4.7.6 | CVE-2025-47496 |
- Medium6.4Authenticated (Subscriber+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting via display_name profile-sync into author term name
≤4.17.0Update to 4.18.0
- Medium6.4Authenticated (Contributor+) Stored Cross-Site Scripting
≤4.17.0Update to 4.18.0
- Medium5.3Missing Authorization
≤4.10.1Update to 4.11.0
- Medium4.3Missing Authorization
≤4.10.1Update to 4.11.0
- High8.8Authenticated (Contributor+) Local File Inclusion
≤4.7.5Update to 4.7.6
Same weakness (Cross-Site Scripting)
All Cross-Site Scripting| 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 medium, CVSS 5.4
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.
- EPSS
- Exploit Prediction Scoring System by FIRST.org.
- VulnCrest content
- Summary, remediation guidance and page layout © VulnCrest. Not sourced from NVD.