CVE-2026-97262 in Visual Composer Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 09/30/2026
Contributor Cross Site Scripting (XSS) in Visual Composer Website Builder <= 45.16.2 versions.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/30/2026
The vulnerability identified as a Contributor Cross-Site Scripting issue within the Visual Composer Website Builder plugin for WordPress, affecting versions up to and including 45.16.2, represents a significant security risk targeting users with lower privilege levels on compromised or maliciously configured sites. This flaw stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms when handling user-supplied data associated with contributor-level accounts. In the context of web application architecture, this specific weakness allows an attacker who has obtained Contributor access to inject malicious scripts into pages that are subsequently viewed by other users, such as administrators or editors. The root cause lies in the plugin's failure to properly sanitize content before rendering it within dynamic page structures, a classic manifestation of CWE-79, which categorizes improper neutralization of input during web page generation known generically as Cross-Site Scripting.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability enables persistent or reflected attacks depending on how the injected script is stored and triggered. An attacker leveraging Contributor privileges can craft specific inputs that bypass existing filters due to inadequate context-aware encoding. When these malicious payloads are executed in the browser of a victim user, they allow for session hijacking, credential theft via keylogging scripts, defacement of website content, or redirection to phishing sites. The impact is particularly severe because it exploits trust relationships within the WordPress ecosystem; users often assume that content created by contributors has undergone some level of administrative review, thereby lowering their guard against malicious code embedded in such posts or pages. This aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007, which covers JavaScript execution as a method for initial access and further exploitation within web applications.
The technical mechanism typically involves the injection of script tags or event handlers into fields that are rendered without proper escaping by the Visual Composer rendering engine. Since contributors can create new pages or posts using the visual builder interface, they have direct control over elements displayed on the frontend. If the plugin does not strictly enforce output encoding for all dynamic variables derived from contributor inputs, any stored payload becomes executable in the context of the victim's session cookies and authentication tokens. This allows the attacker to perform actions as the victim user, potentially escalating privileges if administrative functions are accessible via client-side JavaScript or API endpoints that do not adequately verify server-side permissions against the current user role during execution.
Mitigation strategies must prioritize immediate remediation through software updates alongside defensive coding practices. The most effective solution is to upgrade the Visual Composer Website Builder plugin to a version greater than 45.16.2, where developers have presumably implemented stricter input sanitization and output encoding protocols compliant with modern web security standards such as OWASP Top Ten guidelines for XSS prevention. For organizations unable to update immediately due to compatibility constraints, implementing Web Application Firewalls configured to detect and block common script injection patterns can provide a temporary layer of defense. Additionally, enforcing strict role-based access controls and auditing contributor activities can help identify malicious behavior early. Developers should also ensure that all user-generated content is processed through robust sanitization libraries before being rendered in the DOM, ensuring that special characters are encoded appropriately to prevent browser interpretation as executable code rather than plain text data.