CVE-2026-86602 in WP Recipe Maker Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 09/23/2026
The WP Recipe Maker WordPress plugin before 10.8.2 does not perform any capability check in one of its AJAX actions, allowing any authenticated user, such as a subscriber, to read the full content of unpublished recipes.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/23/2026
The vulnerability identified in versions of the WP Recipe Maker plugin prior to version 10.8.2 represents a critical failure in access control mechanisms within the WordPress ecosystem. This flaw specifically affects the handling of AJAX requests associated with recipe management operations. In standard web application security, particularly within content management systems like WordPress, it is imperative that all actions involving sensitive data or administrative functions verify the user's capabilities and permissions before executing any logic. The absence of such a capability check in this specific AJAX endpoint creates an authorization bypass scenario where the system fails to distinguish between users with different privilege levels.
Technically, the flaw stems from the lack of proper validation on the server side when processing requests intended for recipe data retrieval or manipulation. WordPress relies heavily on role-based access control (RBAC) to manage user permissions, assigning specific capabilities such as edit_posts, publish_posts, or delete_posts to various roles like administrator, editor, author, contributor, and subscriber. The vulnerable code path does not invoke the necessary capability checks, such as current_user_can(), which would normally restrict access based on these assigned roles. Consequently, any authenticated user, regardless of their role including those with minimal privileges like subscribers, can interact directly with this endpoint to retrieve data that should be restricted.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant regarding data confidentiality and privacy. Unpublished recipes often contain proprietary information, unique ingredients, or personal details that the recipe creator intends to keep private until they are ready for public consumption. By allowing unauthorized users to read the full content of these unpublished entries, the plugin exposes sensitive intellectual property and potentially personally identifiable information. This breach undermines the trust model of the platform, as low-privilege users can effectively bypass intended visibility settings designed by site administrators or recipe authors. It transforms a simple publishing workflow into a potential vector for data exfiltration without requiring any elevation of privilege beyond basic authentication.
From an industry standards perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which describes Improper Access Control, and more specifically reflects the characteristics of CWE-639, Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key, although in this case it is a missing check rather than a key manipulation issue. In terms of the MITRE ATT&CK framework for enterprise security, this behavior corresponds to T1078, Valid Accounts, as an attacker leverages legitimate credentials with low privileges to access restricted resources. It also touches upon T1530, Data from Cloud Storage Objects, if one considers the unpublished content stored in the database as a cloud-like object accessible via API endpoints. The scenario illustrates how insufficient validation of user permissions can lead to unauthorized data disclosure even when authentication is successfully performed.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability are straightforward and primarily involve updating the software infrastructure immediately. Site administrators running WP Recipe Maker must upgrade to version 10.8.2 or later, where the developers have implemented the necessary capability checks to restrict access appropriately. For organizations unable to patch immediately due to compatibility concerns with other plugins or themes, temporary mitigations should be considered. These may include restricting access to the WordPress admin area via IP whitelisting if feasible, although this is less effective for AJAX endpoints that might not require full admin panel navigation. Additionally, implementing a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to monitor and block anomalous patterns of requests from low-privilege users attempting to access recipe-related API endpoints can provide an additional layer of defense until the patch is applied. Regular security audits and code reviews focusing on AJAX handlers are recommended to prevent similar authorization flaws in future development cycles, ensuring that every endpoint adheres strictly to the principle of least privilege.