CVE-2026-1254 in Modula Image Gallery Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 02/14/2026
The Modula Image Gallery – Photo Grid & Video Gallery plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass in all versions up to, and including, 2.13.6. This is due to the plugin not properly verifying that a user is authorized to modify specific posts before updating them via the REST API. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with contributor level access and above, to update the title, excerpt, and content of arbitrary posts by passing post IDs in the modulaImages field when editing a gallery.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/19/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2026-1254 affects the Modula Image Gallery plugin for WordPress, specifically targeting versions up to and including 2.13.6. This authorization bypass flaw represents a significant security weakness that undermines the integrity of WordPress content management systems. The issue stems from inadequate input validation and access control mechanisms within the plugin's REST API implementation, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit their existing privileges for unauthorized content modification.
The technical flaw manifests in the plugin's failure to properly verify user authorization when processing updates to posts through the REST API interface. Attackers with contributor-level access or higher can manipulate the modulaImages field parameter during gallery editing operations to target arbitrary posts within the WordPress installation. This vulnerability directly violates the principle of least privilege and demonstrates a critical weakness in the plugin's permission validation system. The flaw allows attackers to modify critical post attributes including title, excerpt, and content fields, effectively enabling content tampering without proper authorization.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses substantial risks to WordPress installations using the affected plugin. The authorization bypass enables attackers to modify content across multiple posts simultaneously, potentially compromising the credibility and security of entire websites. The impact extends beyond simple content modification as it can be leveraged for more sophisticated attacks including defacement, malware injection, or information disclosure. The vulnerability affects the fundamental security model of WordPress by allowing users with relatively low privileges to perform actions typically restricted to administrators or editors, creating a dangerous escalation path for threat actors.
The security implications of this vulnerability align with CWE-285, which addresses improper authorization issues in software systems. This classification specifically covers scenarios where applications fail to properly verify that users are authorized to perform certain operations, directly correlating with the authorization bypass demonstrated in CVE-2026-1254. The vulnerability also maps to ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers valid accounts and credential access, as attackers can leverage their existing contributor privileges to escalate their capabilities within the WordPress environment. Organizations should consider this vulnerability as part of a broader attack surface assessment, particularly in environments where contributor-level accounts are widely distributed or may be compromised.
Mitigation strategies should prioritize immediate plugin updates to versions that address the authorization bypass vulnerability, as the vendor has likely released patches to resolve this issue. Additionally, administrators should implement strict monitoring of REST API activity and post modification events to detect anomalous behavior. Network-level controls can be deployed to restrict access to the WordPress REST API endpoint for non-essential users, while role-based access controls should be reviewed to ensure that contributor accounts have appropriate permissions. Regular security audits of installed plugins should be conducted to identify similar authorization flaws, and organizations should maintain up-to-date security patches for all WordPress components to prevent exploitation of known vulnerabilities.