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Actively exploited in the wild. This CVE is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list — treat remediation as urgent. Federal remediation due by 3 May 2026. Known ransomware use
Wp SquaredWordPress extension · Cpanel

CVE-2026-41940

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-04-29
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 86.0.41 / 110.0.97 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
In the wild Ransomware High EPSS Public exploit Remotely reachable No privileges 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
cPanel and WHM versions after 11.40 contain an authentication bypass vulnerability in the login flow that allows unauthenticated remote attackers to gain unauthorized access to the control panel.

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

cPanel and WHM versions after 11.40 contain an authentication bypass vulnerability in the login flow that allows unauthenticated remote attackers to bypass authentication and gain full unauthorized access to the control panel.

MitigationApply the latest cPanel/WHM security patch or update to a version that addresses this vulnerability. Restrict network access to WHM/cPanel interfaces using firewall rules until the patch can be applied.

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

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Wp SquaredWordPress extension
Affected:< 136.1.7
CpanelApplication
Affected:>= 11.40, < 86.0.41>= 88.0.0, < 110.0.97>= 112.0.0, < 118.0.63>= 120.0.0, < 124.0.35>= 126.0.1, < 126.0.54>= 128.0.0, < 130.0.19>= 132.0.0, < 132.0.29>= 134.0.0, < 134.0.20>= 136.0.0, < 136.0.5
WhmApplication
Affected:>= 11.40, < 86.0.41>= 88.0.0, < 110.0.97>= 112.0.0, < 118.0.63>= 120.0.0, < 124.0.35>= 126.0.1, < 126.0.54>= 128.0.0, < 130.0.19>= 132.0.0, < 132.0.29>= 134.0.0, < 134.0.20>= 136.0.0, < 136.0.5

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 cPanel product installed
    Run command: /usr/local/cpanel/cpanel -V (for cPanel) or whmapi1 version (for WHM) or check /var/cpanel/version for Wp Squared
    Affected if Product is Cpanel, Whm, or Cpanel Wp Squared and version falls within affected ranges
  2. Check cPanel version
    Execute: /usr/local/cpanel/cpanel -V or check /usr/local/cpanel/version file
    Affected if Version is >= 11.40, < 86.0.41; or >= 88.0.0, < 110.0.97; or >= 112.0.0, < 118.0.63; or >= 120.0.0, < 124.0.35; or >= 126.0.1, < 126.0.54; or >= 128.0.0, < 130.0.19; or >= 132.0.0, < 132.0.29; or >= 134.0.0, < 134.0.20; or >= 136.0.0, < 136.0.5
  3. Check WHM version
    Execute: whmapi1 version or check /usr/local/cpanel/3rdparty/whm/version file
    Affected if Version is >= 11.40, < 86.0.41; or >= 88.0.0, < 110.0.97; or >= 112.0.0, < 118.0.63; or >= 120.0.0, < 124.0.35; or >= 126.0.1, < 126.0.54; or >= 128.0.0, < 130.0.19; or >= 132.0.0, < 132.0.29; or >= 134.0.0, < 134.0.20; or >= 136.0.0, < 136.0.5
  4. Check Wp Squared version
    Check /var/cpanel/version or run: cpanel_wp_squared --version
    Affected if Version is < 136.1.7

Environment is affected if any installed cPanel, WHM, or Wp Squared version matches the affected ranges, since the authentication bypass can be exploited without any specific configuration being enabled.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 86.0.41 / 110.0.97 / 118.0.63 or later
Fixed in 86.0.41110.0.97118.0.63
Interim mitigation

Apply the latest cPanel/WHM security patch or update to a version that addresses this vulnerability. Restrict network access to WHM/cPanel interfaces using firewall rules until the patch can be applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

cPanel/WHM version 124.0.35 or later (STABLE release)

  1. 1. Backup your current cPanel/WHM configuration and data before performing any upgrade.
  2. 2. Log in to WHM (Web Host Manager) as the administrator.
  3. 3. Navigate to 'Home' > 'Server Configuration' > 'Update Preferences' or use the 'cPanel Update' feature.
  4. 4. Configure the update to use 'STABLE' release tier to receive the latest stable version.
  5. 5. Run the update via command line: 'yum update cpanel' or through WHM interface.
  6. 6. After update completes, verify the new version by checking 'Home' > 'Server Information' or running 'whmapi1 version' in terminal.
  7. 7. Test login flow to confirm authentication bypass is patched.
  8. 8. Review cPanel release notes for any post-update configuration requirements.
Caveat Major version jumps may require testing of third-party plugins/cPanel plugins; ensure backup before upgrade

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

Fix this in Wp Squared Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2026-41940 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