Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Kadence Memberships through version 4.0.0 can generate password-reset emails containing an attacker-controlled link. If a targeted user clicks that link, the attacker may obtain the valid reset credentials and take over the account, including an administrator account. Successful compromise could expose protected content and permit unauthorized site changes.
Executive priority
Treat this as an urgent remediation item for internet-accessible WordPress sites, especially those with valuable member data or privileged administrators. Prioritize identifying affected installations and updating them. Investigate promptly if unexpected password resets, administrator changes, or unfamiliar sessions are present.
Technical view
The legacy lost-password flow accepts the rc_redirect POST value without adequate destination validation. It uses that value for both an HTTP redirect and the emailed password-reset URL. A nonce exposed through the public login_form shortcode allows anonymous requests. Exploitation still requires the targeted user to click the poisoned reset link.
Likely exposure
WordPress sites running Membership Plugin – Kadence Memberships, formerly Restrict Content, version 4.0.0 or earlier are potentially exposed where the legacy lost-password handler and public login_form shortcode are reachable. The supplied sources do not identify affected hosting configurations or deployment prevalence.
Exploitation context
The attack is remote, requires no authentication, and can target privileged accounts, but requires victim interaction. The attacker initiates a reset whose email directs the victim through an attacker-controlled host, exposing valid reset data. CISA KEV status is false, and the supplied evidence does not establish active exploitation.
Researcher notes
The vulnerable sinks are identified in legacy/includes/forms.php around lines 243 and 306; anonymous nonce exposure is identified around line 207. CWE-640 applies. The cited WordPress changeset compares versions 4.0.0 and 4.0.1. The bundle does not provide telemetry, proof of exploitation in the wild, or deployment prevalence.
Mitigation direction
- Update Kadence Memberships to version 4.0.1 or a later vendor-supported release.
- If immediate updating is impossible, restrict access to the affected legacy password-reset flow.
- Review vendor guidance before applying any compensating control.
- Force password resets and invalidate active sessions if account compromise is suspected.
Validation and detection
- Inventory WordPress sites and confirm the installed Kadence Memberships or Restrict Content version.
- Verify production no longer runs version 4.0.0 or earlier.
- Confirm password-reset emails generate links only for the legitimate site origin.
- Review password-reset activity, administrator changes, and unfamiliar sessions for suspicious behavior.
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-640: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. 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 lookupCredential and access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references authentication or credential exposure, so valid-account and credential-access review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-9273 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
- Critical
- CVSS
- 9.3 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/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.
SSVC decision data
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:C/C:H/I:H/A:N2.85.8WordfenceVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
9.3CriticalVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- Source timelineWordfence
Vendor Notified
- Source timelineWordfence
Disclosed
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/ca38c423-2df8-4f20-bd95-2ecd84167a7f?source=cveCVE reference, Wordfence
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/restrict-content/tags/4.0.0/legacy/includes/forms.php#L243CVE reference, Wordfence
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/restrict-content/trunk/legacy/includes/forms.php#L243CVE reference, Wordfence
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?new=3549742%40restrict-content%2Ftags%2F4.0.1&old=3529319%40restrict-content%2Ftags%2F4.0.0CVE reference, Wordfence
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.
Weak Password Recovery Mechanism for Forgotten Password
Weak Password Recovery Mechanism for Forgotten Password represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.