CVE-2026-3178

High

Published: 11 March 2026

Published

11 March 2026

Modified

22 April 2026

KEV Added

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Patch

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CVSS Score 7.2 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N

EPSS Score 0.0013 32.3th percentile

Risk Priority 14 60% EPSS · 20% KEV · 20% CVSS

Summary

CVE-2026-3178 is a high-severity Cross-site Scripting (CWE-79) vulnerability in Wordpress (inferred from references). Its CVSS base score is 7.2 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 32.3th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Threat & Defense at a Glance

What attackers do: exploitation maps to Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190) and 2 other techniques.

Threat & Defense Details

Likely Mitigating ControlsAI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

CA-8 Penetration Testing

addresses: CWE-79

Penetration testing submits XSS payloads to web applications, detecting cross-site scripting flaws for subsequent remediation.

SI-10 Information Input Validation

addresses: CWE-79

Validates web inputs to reject script-related content that could produce XSS.

SI-15 Information Output Filtering

addresses: CWE-79

Output validation against expected content can reject or sanitize script content in generated web pages, reducing XSS exploitability.

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI

T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access

Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.

attack.mitre.org →

T1189 Drive-by Compromise Initial Access

Adversaries may gain access to a system through a user visiting a website over the normal course of browsing.

attack.mitre.org →

T1539 Steal Web Session Cookie Credential Access

An adversary may steal web application or service session cookies and use them to gain access to web applications or Internet services as an authenticated user without needing credentials.

attack.mitre.org →

Why these techniques?

Stored XSS in public-facing WordPress plugin directly enables remote exploitation of internet-facing web apps (T1190); facilitates drive-by compromise of site visitors via injected scripts (T1189); and enables web session cookie theft for hijacking (T1539).

Confidence: MEDIUM · MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise v18.1

NVD Description

The Name Directory plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via the 'name_directory_name' parameter in all versions up to, and including, 1.32.1 due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to…

inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user accesses an injected page. The vulnerability was partially patched in versions 1.30.3 and 1.32.1.

Deeper analysisAI

CVE-2026-3178 is a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Name Directory plugin for WordPress, affecting all versions up to and including 1.32.1. The flaw stems from insufficient input sanitization and output escaping of the 'name_directory_name' parameter, allowing arbitrary web scripts to be injected into pages. It is classified under CWE-79 with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.2 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N), indicating high severity due to its network accessibility, low attack complexity, lack of required privileges or user interaction, and changed scope.

Unauthenticated attackers can exploit this vulnerability remotely by submitting malicious payloads via the 'name_directory_name' parameter, resulting in stored scripts that execute in users' browsers whenever they access the affected pages. This enables potential theft of sensitive data, session hijacking, or further site compromise, with low confidentiality and integrity impacts but no availability disruption.

Advisories note that the vulnerability was partially patched in versions 1.30.3 and 1.32.1, though it remains exploitable up to 1.32.1. References to WordPress plugin trac repositories highlight specific code locations in admin.php (lines 930-931) and helpers.php (line 602), along with changeset 3478625 likely detailing the partial fixes; security practitioners should review the Wordfence threat intelligence page for additional mitigation guidance and ensure updating to the latest plugin version beyond 1.32.1.