CVE-2026-104730 in Sunshine Photo Cart Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 10/16/2026
The Sunshine Photo Cart – Client Photo Gallery & Photo Proofing for Photographers plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to PHP Object Injection in all versions up to, and including, 3.7.4 via deserialization of untrusted input . This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to inject a PHP Object. No known POP chain is present in the vulnerable software, which means this vulnerability has no impact unless another plugin or theme containing a POP chain is installed on the site. If a POP chain is present via an additional plugin or theme installed on the target system, it may allow the attacker to perform actions like delete arbitrary files, retrieve sensitive data, or execute code depending on the POP chain present. If a POP chain is present via an additional plugin or theme installed on the target system, the attacker can store the malicious payload unauthenticated via the public favorites page and trigger deserialization by viewing any image in a non-viewable or private gallery.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/16/2026
The Sunshine Photo Cart – Client Photo Gallery & Photo Proofing for Photographers WordPress plugin contains a critical PHP Object Injection vulnerability affecting all versions up to and including 3.7.4. This flaw stems from the insecure deserialization of untrusted input, allowing attackers to inject arbitrary PHP objects into the application context. The root cause lies in the handling of user-supplied data during specific operations within the plugin, where serialized object strings are passed directly to PHP's unserialize function without adequate validation or sanitization. This type of vulnerability is categorized under CWE-502, which denotes Deserialization of Untrusted Data, a common weakness that can lead to severe security compromises when combined with exploitable gadget chains in the surrounding environment.
In isolation, this specific vulnerability within the Sunshine Photo Cart plugin does not result in direct remote code execution or system compromise because no known PHP Object Programming (POP) chain exists within its own source code. A POP chain is a sequence of method calls that can be triggered by deserializing a crafted object to achieve arbitrary actions such as file deletion, data exfiltration, or command execution. Without an existing gadget in the vulnerable plugin itself, the injected objects remain inert and cannot perform malicious operations on their own. Therefore, the immediate impact of this vulnerability is limited unless the target WordPress installation includes other plugins or themes that contain exploitable POP chains.
The severity of this vulnerability escalates significantly when considering the broader ecosystem of a typical WordPress site. If an attacker identifies another installed plugin or theme with known deserialization vulnerabilities and associated POP gadgets, they can leverage this injection flaw to trigger those external gadget chains. The attack vector is particularly insidious because it allows for unauthenticated exploitation through public-facing endpoints. Specifically, attackers can store malicious serialized payloads via the public favorites page feature of the Sunshine Photo Cart plugin without requiring any authentication credentials. This initial storage step effectively places the payload on the server in a location accessible to subsequent triggers.
The actual execution of the attack occurs when an administrator or authorized user views an image within a non-viewable or private gallery. The act of viewing such content can inadvertently trigger the deserialization process, thereby activating the injected object and executing the POP chain present in the other installed software components. This mechanism allows for actions ranging from deleting arbitrary files on the server to retrieving sensitive database information or achieving full remote code execution, depending entirely on the capabilities defined by the external POP chain. Consequently, this vulnerability serves as a critical bridge that transforms an otherwise harmless injection into a high-impact exploit through dependency chaining.
From a threat intelligence perspective, this attack pattern aligns with ATT&CK techniques related to Initial Access and Execution via Web Application Components. The use of public-facing features for payload storage followed by trigger-based execution demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of WordPress architecture vulnerabilities. Security professionals must recognize that the risk is not merely about the specific plugin but about the cumulative security posture of all installed extensions. The presence of this vulnerability indicates a need for rigorous auditing of third-party code and strict input validation practices across the entire application stack.
Mitigation strategies should prioritize immediate updates to version 3.7.5 or later, where the deserialization flaw has been addressed by implementing proper type checking and whitelisting mechanisms before processing serialized data. In environments where updating is not immediately feasible, administrators should consider disabling the public favorites feature if it is not essential for business operations. Additionally, conducting a comprehensive audit of all installed plugins and themes to identify known vulnerabilities with associated POP chains is crucial. Implementing Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) that can detect and block anomalous serialized data patterns may provide an additional layer of defense against exploitation attempts targeting these dependency-based attack vectors.