CVE-2026-119258 in Swipe Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 11/14/2026
The Swipe WordPress plugin through 1.4 does not properly authenticate a login request before issuing a WordPress session cookie, allowing unauthenticated attackers to log in as an existing user, including an administrator, when that user has an active app session.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/14/2026
The vulnerability identified within the Swipe WordPress plugin versions up to and including 1.4 represents a critical authentication bypass flaw rooted in improper session management logic. The core technical deficiency lies in the application's failure to validate the authenticity of login requests prior to issuing or accepting WordPress session cookies. In standard web application security models, particularly those built on frameworks like WordPress, the establishment of an authenticated session must be predicated on rigorous verification of user credentials and often involves additional checks such as nonces or token validation to prevent replay attacks and unauthorized access. However, in this specific implementation, the plugin allows a login request to proceed without ensuring that the actor initiating the request is genuinely authorized to do so for the target account. This oversight creates a direct pathway for unauthenticated attackers to assume the identity of existing users within the WordPress environment.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to its potential for privilege escalation and complete system compromise. Because the flaw permits authentication as any user, including those with administrative privileges, an attacker can gain full control over the compromised website if they target a user account that holds admin rights. This level of access typically allows the execution of arbitrary code, modification of site content, installation of malicious plugins or themes, and exfiltration of sensitive data stored within the database. The condition that this attack is effective when the victim has an active app session suggests that the vulnerability may be exploitable in scenarios where mobile applications or third-party integrations maintain persistent connections to the WordPress backend. This expands the attack surface beyond traditional web-based attacks, potentially allowing remote exploitation without direct user interaction if the attacker can trigger the vulnerable endpoint while a valid session is established for another process.
From a classification perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-287, which denotes Improper Authentication, as well as CWE-613, Insufficient Session Expiration, depending on how the active app session state is maintained and verified. In terms of offensive security frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK for Enterprise or ICS, this behavior maps to techniques involving Initial Access through Valid Accounts (T1078) and potentially Credential Access if the attacker leverages existing valid sessions rather than stealing credentials directly. The lack of proper authentication checks before session cookie issuance is a fundamental deviation from secure coding practices recommended by OWASP, specifically regarding Session Management flaws where tokens are issued without sufficient proof of identity or context validation.
Mitigation strategies must address both immediate remediation and long-term architectural improvements. The primary and most effective solution is to upgrade the Swipe WordPress plugin to a version later than 1.4, assuming the vendor has released a patch that corrects this authentication logic. If an update is not immediately available, administrators should consider disabling the specific functionality or endpoint associated with the vulnerable login request mechanism until a fix can be applied. Additionally, implementing Web Application Firewall rules that monitor for anomalous session creation patterns could provide a layer of defense in depth. It is also advisable to enforce strict session timeouts and require re-authentication for sensitive administrative actions to limit the window of opportunity for an attacker exploiting this flaw. Regular security audits focusing on authentication flows and session handling are essential to prevent similar vulnerabilities from persisting in custom or third-party plugin codebases.