CVE-2026-116512: Project Manager remote code execution vulnerability
critical 9.8 published 2026-10-31 · updated 2026-11-02
- Affected versions
- 4.1.1 and older
- Fixed in
- 4.1.2 *
- Latest version
- 4.1.2
- Severity
- Critical · CVSS 9.8
- Active installs
- 5,000+
- Type
- Remote code execution
* The source does not name a fixed version; this is the first wordpress.org release after the last affected version.
What an attacker needs
- Access: None. No account or login is needed.
CVSS vector (score by Wordfence): CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
What to do now
- Update Project Manager to 4.1.2 or newer: Dashboard → Updates, or Plugins → “update now”.
- If you cannot update right away, deactivate it until you can.
- Turn on auto-updates for it: Plugins → “Enable auto-updates” on its row.
- Not sure which version you run? Check your version against every known Project Manager issue.
With WP-CLI:
wp plugin get wedevs-project-manager --field=version. - If you ran an affected version and something looks off (new admin users, spam pages, redirects), run the free scan below.
The advisory
The Project Manager – AI Powered Project Management, Task Management, Kanban Board & Time Tracker plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution in all versions up to, and including, 4.1.1 via the 'id' parameter parameter. This is due to unsanitized 'id' parameter value concatenated directly into the pipe-delimited validation rule string, which is then split and each token invoked as a dynamic PHP function with no allowlist check. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to execute code on the server. This is exploitable by unauthenticated attackers because WordPress core executes the route argument's validate_callback inside WP_REST_Server::dispatch() before the route's permission_callback is invoked, meaning the Project_Manage_Capability authorization gate is never reached on the vulnerable code path.
References
- NVD CVE-2026-116512 nvd.nist.gov
- Wordfence advisory www.wordfence.com
- Code change (fix) plugins.trac.wordpress.org
- Plugin source plugins.trac.wordpress.org
Related
Ran an affected version? Check your site for signs of a hack
The free scan reads the public side of your site and looks for spam pages, hidden redirects, injected scripts and blacklist entries. No login, no install, about a minute.
Where this data comes from
- CVE record, score and references: NIST National Vulnerability Database (NVD), checked 2026-11-04. This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.
- Versions and install counts: wordpress.org/plugins/wedevs-project-manager (Plugins API), fetched 2026-11-04.
- The summary, “what an attacker needs” and “what to do” sections are our plain-English reading of the record and the plugin's release history; the quoted description is the record's own text. Spot an error? Email Daniel.