dbcve.org
Cross-site Scripting (XSS)Weakness · CWE-79

CVE-2026-4665

MEDIUM · 6.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-05-05
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
70/100
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 WP Carousel Free plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via crafted fancybox `data-caption` attributes in all versions up to, and including, 2.7.10. This is due to the `fancybox-config.js` script reading the carousel container's `id` attribute directly from the DOM to construct a jQuery selector without sanitization. When a Contributor crafts an HTML block with a malformed carousel container ID (containing characters invalid for jQuery selectors), the custom fancybox configuration throws a JavaScript error and fails to initialize. This causes the bundled fancybox library (v3.5.7) to fall back to its default caption handling, which renders the `data-caption` attribute content as raw HTML. Since WordPress allows `data-*` attributes through `wp_kses_post()`, this makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Contributor-level access and above, to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user clicks an image in the crafted carousel lightbox.

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 · moderate confidence

The WP Carousel Free plugin's fancybox-config.js reads the carousel container's id attribute directly from the DOM without sanitization to construct a jQuery selector. When a contributor crafts a malformed id (invalid for jQuery selectors), the custom fancybox configuration throws a JavaScript error and fails to initialize. This causes the bundled fancybox v3.5.7 to fall back to its default caption handling, which renders data-caption attribute content as raw HTML, enabling stored XSS.

MitigationUpdate to version 2.7.11 or later when available; until then, restrict contributor-level access and review carousel shortcodes for suspicious data-caption attributes.

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
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

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

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. Verify WP Carousel Free plugin is installed
    In WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins and look for 'WP Carousel Free' or check the wp-content/plugins directory for the wp-carousel-free folder
    Affected if plugin is not installed or not present on the system
  2. Identify the installed plugin version
    In WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins, find WP Carousel Free, and note the version number displayed
    Affected if version is present and is below 2.7.11 (or if version cannot be determined and the plugin is active)
  3. Confirm fancybox v3.5.7 is bundled
    Check the plugin files for /js/fancybox-config.js or /assets/js/ folder for fancybox version 3.5.7; inspect the file directly to confirm the version string
    Affected if fancybox v3.5.7 is bundled and loaded by the plugin
  4. Check for existing carousel content with data-caption attributes
    Search the database or carousel shortcode entries for 'data-caption=' within [wp_carousel] or similar shortcode usage; inspect the shortcode attributes for any data-caption values
    Affected if carousel shortcodes containing data-caption attributes exist in posts, pages, or widget areas
  5. Identify contributor-level user access
    In WordPress admin, go to Users and review user roles; check if any users have the Contributor role assigned
    Affected if one or more Contributor-level users exist with the ability to create or edit carousel content

The environment is affected if WP Carousel Free plugin is installed and active with a version below 2.7.11 while using fancybox v3.5.7 and containing carousel content with data-caption attributes, especially when Contributor-level access exists.

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 to version 2.7.11 or later when available; until then, restrict contributor-level access and review carousel shortcodes for suspicious data-caption attributes.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Update to WP Carousel Free version 2.7.11 or latest available version (check plugins.trac.wordpress.org for current release)

  1. Check the WordPress plugin repository for WP Carousel Free at plugins.trac.wordpress.org for the latest version
  2. If version 2.7.11 or higher is available, update the plugin through WordPress admin > Plugins > WP Carousel Free > Update Now
  3. If no fixed version is available yet, restrict user permissions: ensure only Administrators can create or edit carousels, and consider using a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to sanitize data-caption attributes until a patch is released
  4. Audit existing carousels for any suspicious data-caption attributes containing injected script tags
  5. Clear all caching layers after applying the update

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,080
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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-2026-4665 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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