CVE-2026-123769

SureDash <= 1.13.0 - Authenticated (Custom+) Privilege Escalation to /suredash/v1/save-settings REST Endpoint

High 8.8

Description

The SureDash – Community, Courses & Member Dashboard plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 1.13.0 This is due to the `save_settings()` REST handler at `/suredash/v1/save-settings` being gated only by `admin_permission_callback()`, which authorizes any holder of the custom `manage_portal_dashboard` capability (Portal Manager role) without requiring `promote_users`, `edit_users`, or `manage_options`, combined with `sanitize_settings_data()` iterating all attacker-supplied keys with no allow-list, allowing arbitrary keys such as `default_role` to pass through `sanitize_text_field()` unchanged and be persisted into the `portal_settings` option via `update_option()` with no role-validity check. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with Portal Manager-level access and above to poison the `default_role` setting to `administrator`, after which any subsequent new-user registration through the publicly accessible block-register endpoint reads the corrupted setting and passes it directly to `wp_insert_user()`, producing a full WordPress Administrator account under the attacker's control. The exploit requires two steps: a POST to the authenticated `save-settings` endpoint to overwrite `default_role`, followed by triggering a new registration through the unauthenticated block-register endpoint to receive the escalated account. Successful exploitation causes the attacker's own account to receive the complete administrator role.

Key facts

Published: 13 Nov 2026
Last changed: 13 Nov 2026
Assigned by: Wordfence
EPSS: 0.427% likely to be exploited in the next 30 days, higher than 37.499% of CVEs (scores for 15 Nov 2026)

Severity scores

Each score is shown as its source gave it. They are not averaged or merged.

8.8CVSS 3.1, Highfrom the CNA (Wordfence)CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Historical context and remediation

This reference retains the original CVE publication date. A recent record update does not mean a new attack occurred.

No separately sourced impact summary is available on this page yet. Consult the description, version data and dated exploitation evidence.

No explicit remediation statement is available on this page yet. Consult the original record and vendor references before choosing a fix.

Version statuses below come from the CNA. An “unaffected” version is not necessarily a currently supported release or proof of a patch date. EPSS is a dated risk estimate, not a count of historical attacks.

Read the original CVE record.

Affected products

Vendor	Product	Versions
brainstormforce	SureDash – Community, Courses & Member Dashboard	Default status: unaffected 0 up to and including 1.13.0 (affected)