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PHP File Inclusion (RFI/LFI)Weakness · CWE-98

CVE-2026-1463

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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 Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Local File Inclusion in all versions up to, and including, 4.0.3 via the 'template' parameter in gallery shortcodes. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Author-level access and above, to include and execute arbitrary .php files on the server, allowing the execution of any PHP code in those files. This can be used to bypass access controls, obtain sensitive data, or achieve code execution in cases where .php file types can be uploaded and included.

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 NextGEN Gallery WordPress plugin versions up to 4.0.3 contain a Local File Inclusion vulnerability via the 'template' parameter in gallery shortcodes. Authenticated attackers with Author-level or higher access can include arbitrary .php files, leading to remote code execution.

MitigationUpdate the NextGEN Gallery plugin to a version newer than 4.0.3, or implement strict input validation on the 'template' parameter to block path traversal sequences.

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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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. Confirm NextGEN Gallery plugin is installed
    Access WordPress admin dashboard, navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins, locate NextGEN Gallery and note the version number displayed
    Affected if Plugin is present and version is 4.0.3 or lower
  2. Compare installed version to affected range
    Review the version number against the affected range: any version up to and including 4.0.3 is vulnerable
    Affected if Version is 4.0.3 or lower (including 2.x, 3.x lines)
  3. Verify presence of Author-level or higher user accounts
    In WordPress admin, go to Users > All Users and check if any accounts with Author, Editor, or Administrator roles exist on the site
    Affected if At least one user account with Author-level or higher privileges exists on the site
  4. Confirm shortcode functionality is active
    Search post/page content or template files for occurrences of [ngg] or [nextgen-gallery] shortcode tags, or check if the plugin shortcode handler is loaded in the site
    Affected if Gallery shortcodes are in use or the plugin shortcode handler is registered and active

If the NextGEN Gallery plugin version is 4.0.3 or lower AND shortcodes are active AND Author-level users exist, the environment is vulnerable to this LFI via the template parameter.

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 NextGEN Gallery plugin to a version newer than 4.0.3, or implement strict input validation on the 'template' parameter to block path traversal sequences.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

NextGEN Gallery version 4.0.4 or later

  1. 1. Log in to the WordPress admin dashboard with an account that has Administrator privileges.
  2. 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins.
  3. 3. Locate the 'NextGEN Gallery' plugin in the list.
  4. 4. Check the current version number displayed under the plugin name.
  5. 5. If the installed version is 4.0.3 or earlier, click 'Update Now' to install the latest available version.
  6. 6. Alternatively, download the latest version from the WordPress Plugin Repository and upload it manually via Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin.
  7. 7. After updating, verify the new version number is 4.0.4 or higher.
  8. 8. Test that the gallery shortcodes function correctly and the template parameter no longer accepts arbitrary file paths.

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,390
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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-2026-1463 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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