dbcve.org
Deserialization of Untrusted DataWeakness · CWE-502

CVE-2026-12115

MEDIUM · 6.6 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-06-17
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
72/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
The Counter Box – Add Countdowns, Timers & Dynamic Counters to WordPress plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to PHP Object Injection in all versions up to, and including, 2.0.13 via deserialization of untrusted input . This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with administrator-level access and above, to inject a PHP Object. No known POP chain is present in the vulnerable software, which means this vulnerability has no impact unless another plugin or theme containing a POP chain is installed on the site. If a POP chain is present via an additional plugin or theme installed on the target system, it may allow the attacker to perform actions like delete arbitrary files, retrieve sensitive data, or execute code depending on the POP chain present. Deserialization is triggered automatically upon the post-import redirect that renders the list table, and again when any item is opened for editing, requiring no additional navigation beyond the import action itself.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

The Counter Box WordPress plugin versions up to 2.0.13 are vulnerable to PHP Object Injection via unsafe deserialization of untrusted input. Authenticated administrators can inject PHP objects through the post-import redirect or when editing items. While the plugin lacks an internal POP chain, the vulnerability can be weaponized if other plugins or themes with POP chains are present on the target system.

MitigationUpdate the Counter Box plugin to version 2.0.14 or later. Until patched, limit administrator access and audit for plugins/themes containing POP chains that could be chained with this vulnerability.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
High
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Counter Box plugin installation
    Check wp-content/plugins/counter-box/ directory or query the WordPress database table wp_options for option_name='active_plugins' to see if counter-box is listed
    Affected if The counter-box plugin directory exists or 'counter-box' appears in active plugins list
  2. Determine installed Counter Box version
    Read the plugin header from counter-box.php or check version in readme.txt file within the plugin directory
    Affected if Version is 2.0.13 or lower, or no version is readable (treat as vulnerable if unable to confirm version is 2.0.14 or higher)
  3. Verify plugin is active
    Query WordPress database: SELECT * FROM wp_options WHERE option_name = 'active_plugins' and check if counter-box is in the serialized array
    Affected if Plugin is actively loaded in the WordPress environment (inactive plugins cannot be exploited this way)
  4. Check for POP chain dependencies
    Review installed plugins and themes for known POP chain capabilities (such as WooCommerce, popular page builders, or plugins with unserialize() calls on user input)
    Affected if Multiple plugins/themes are installed alongside Counter Box, particularly those with known deserialization gadgets or unserialize() usage on external input

If Counter Box plugin version 2.0.13 or below is installed and active, and other plugins/themes with POP chains exist on the system, the environment is vulnerable to PHP Object Injection.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update the Counter Box plugin to version 2.0.14 or later. Until patched, limit administrator access and audit for plugins/themes containing POP chains that could be chained with this vulnerability.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

2.0.14 or higher

  1. 1. Navigate to the WordPress admin dashboard
  2. 2. Go to Plugins > Installed Plugins
  3. 3. Locate the 'Counter Box – Add Countdowns, Timers & Dynamic Counters to WordPress' plugin
  4. 4. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to upgrade to the latest patched version
  5. 5. After updating, verify the plugin version is above 2.0.13

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,770
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-12115 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data