Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2026-1165 affects the WordPress Popup Box plugin up to version 6.1.1. A malicious actor could trick an administrator into clicking a crafted link that changes whether popups are published or unpublished. This is not a data theft issue, but it can alter site content behavior and disrupt campaigns or user messaging.
Executive priority
Treat as a routine but timely WordPress plugin update. The issue can change popup visibility but does not indicate data exposure or full site compromise. Prioritize sites where popups affect revenue, compliance notices, lead generation, or customer communications.
Technical view
The vulnerability is CSRF in the plugin’s publish_unpublish_popupbox function. The nonce check is flawed because it verifies a self-created nonce rather than one submitted with the request. The CVSS 3.1 score is 4.3, with network access, low complexity, no privileges, required user interaction, and low integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to WordPress sites running Popup Box – Create Countdown, Coupon, Video, Contact Form Popups versions up to and including 6.1.1. Sites without this plugin, or with a fixed later version, are not indicated as affected by the provided sources.
Exploitation context
The sources do not report active exploitation, and the CVE is not marked KEV. Exploitation requires social engineering: an unauthenticated attacker must convince a logged-in site administrator to take an action such as clicking a link.
Researcher notes
The key bug is nonce validation logic in publish_unpublish_popupbox. Public references include affected code locations in version 6.1.0 and a WordPress Trac changeset from 6.1.1 to 6.1.2. Evidence supports CSRF-driven popup status changes only; do not assume broader administrative compromise.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade Popup Box to version 6.1.2 or later if available.
- If immediate upgrade is not possible, restrict administrator browsing exposure.
- Warn administrators not to click unexpected plugin-management links.
- Monitor vendor and WordPress plugin guidance for additional remediation details.
Validation and detection
- Inventory WordPress sites for the Popup Box plugin.
- Confirm installed plugin versions are later than 6.1.1.
- Review popup publish or unpublish changes for unexpected administrator-triggered activity.
- Verify the vendor changeset is present in the deployed plugin version.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-352: User-session and phishing behavior lookup
Client-side and session-facing weaknesses should be reviewed alongside initial-access and user-execution behaviors. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-1165 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 4.3 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N2.81.4Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
4.3MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/585a9eb4-f394-4cb2-9050-659171a994d9?source=cveCVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/ays-popup-box/tags/6.1.0/admin/partials/ays-pb-admin-display.php#L22CVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/ays-popup-box/tags/6.1.0/includes/lists/class-ays-pb-list-table.php#L701CVE reference
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?sfp_email=&sfph_mail=&reponame=&old=3439514@ays-popup-box/tags/6.1.1/&new=3444612@ays-popup-box/tags/6.1.2/CVE reference
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)
Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.