CVE-2026-6963

High

Published: 02 May 2026

Published

02 May 2026

Modified

05 May 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 0.0002 5.8th percentile

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

Summary

CVE-2026-6963 is a high-severity Missing Authorization (CWE-862) vulnerability in Wordpress (inferred from references). Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 5.8th 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 AC-3 (Access Enforcement) and AC-6 (Least Privilege).

Threat & Defense at a Glance

What attackers do: exploitation maps to Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068) and 1 other technique. What defenders deploy: see the NIST 800-53 controls recommended below.

Threat & Defense Details

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5)AI

AC-3 Access Enforcement good match

prevent

Enforces approved authorizations for access to system resources, directly addressing the missing capability check on the wmg_save_provider_config AJAX action that allows unauthorized SMTP configuration updates.

AC-6 Least Privilege good match

prevent

Implements least privilege to restrict subscriber-level users from performing administrative actions like SMTP changes, preventing the privilege escalation exploited in this vulnerability.

SI-2 Flaw Remediation good match

prevent

Requires identification and remediation of flaws such as the missing authorization in WP Mail Gateway versions up to 1.8, via patching to add capability checks and prevent exploitation.

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation

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

attack.mitre.org →

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 →

Why these techniques?

Missing authorization on AJAX action in public-facing WordPress plugin allows low-priv authenticated users to modify SMTP config for mail redirection and admin password reset interception, directly enabling T1068 (Exploitation for Privilege Escalation) and T1190 (Exploit Public-Facing Application).

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

NVD Description

The WP Mail Gateway plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to unauthorized access due to a missing capability check on the wmg_save_provider_config AJAX action in all versions up to, and including, 1.8. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level…

access and above, to update SMTP settings and redirect mail which can be used for privilege escalation by triggering a password reset email and using that to access and administrator's account.

Deeper analysisAI

CVE-2026-6963 affects the WP Mail Gateway plugin for WordPress in all versions up to and including 1.8. The vulnerability is unauthorized access stemming from a missing capability check on the wmg_save_provider_config AJAX action, classified under CWE-862 (Missing Authorization). It 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 was published on 2026-05-02.

Authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access or higher can exploit this issue over the network with low complexity and no user interaction required. By invoking the vulnerable AJAX action, they can update SMTP settings to redirect mail traffic. This enables privilege escalation, such as triggering a password reset email for an administrator account and intercepting it to gain unauthorized access.

References point to specific code locations in the plugin's version 1.8 tag and trunk branch, including Bootstrap.php line 47 and Functions.php line 111, as well as changeset 3515205 in the WordPress plugin repository, indicating locations of the issue and potential fixes through code updates.