CVE-2026-3243

HighUpdated

Published: 08 April 2026

Published

08 April 2026

Modified

24 April 2026

KEV Added

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Patch

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CVSS Score 8.8 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS Score 0.0026 49.0th percentile

Risk Priority 18 60% EPSS · 20% KEV · 20% CVSS

Summary

CVE-2026-3243 is a high-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Wordpress (inferred from references). Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 49.0th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 CM-5 (Access Restrictions for Change) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation).

Threat & Defense at a Glance

What attackers do: exploitation maps to Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190) and 2 other techniques. What defenders deploy: see the NIST 800-53 controls recommended below.

Threat & Defense Details

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5)AI

SI-10 Information Input Validation good match

prevent

Requires information input validation at system entry points, directly preventing path traversal exploits due to insufficient file path validation in the plugin's create_crop function.

SI-2 Flaw Remediation good match

prevent

Mandates timely identification, reporting, and correction of flaws like this arbitrary file deletion vulnerability through patching the affected plugin versions.

CM-5 Access Restrictions for Change good match

prevent

Restricts access to changes such as file deletions on system components, preventing authenticated low-privilege users from deleting arbitrary files like wp-config.php.

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 →

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation

Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.

attack.mitre.org →

T1070.004 File Deletion Stealth

Adversaries may delete files left behind by the actions of their intrusion activity.

attack.mitre.org →

Why these techniques?

Vulnerability in public-facing WordPress plugin enables low-privilege authenticated exploitation (T1190) for arbitrary file deletion (T1070.004), facilitating privilege escalation via software vuln (T1068).

Confidence: HIGH · MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise v19.0

NVD Description

The Advanced Members for ACF plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion due to insufficient file path validation in the create_crop function in all versions up to, and including, 1.2.5. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with…

Subscriber-level access and above, to delete arbitrary files on the server, which can easily lead to remote code execution when the right file is deleted (such as wp-config.php). The vulnerability was partially patched in version 1.2.5.

Deeper analysisAI

CVE-2026-3243 is an arbitrary file deletion vulnerability in the Advanced Members for ACF plugin for WordPress, caused by insufficient file path validation in the create_crop function. It affects all versions up to and including 1.2.5. The issue, published on 2026-04-08, carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) and maps to CWE-22.

Authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access or higher can exploit the vulnerability over the network with low complexity. By targeting the flawed validation, they can delete arbitrary files on the server, potentially leading to remote code execution—for instance, by deleting critical files like wp-config.php.

The vulnerability was partially patched in version 1.2.5, as indicated by changesets in the plugin's Trac repository. References include code locations such as class-avatar.php lines 266 and 57 in tag 1.2.4, line 710 in trunk, and patch details in changesets 3479725 and 3492372.