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CWE-1284Weakness · CWE-1284

CVE-2026-57623

CRITICAL · 9.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-07-02
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
99/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click 7 weeks old

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
Unauthenticated Arbitrary Code Execution in W3 Total Cache <= 2.9.4 versions.

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

Unauthenticated arbitrary code execution vulnerability in W3 Total Cache plugin for WordPress versions 2.9.4 and below allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code without any authentication credentials.

MitigationUpgrade W3 Total Cache plugin to a version newer than 2.9.4 immediately. Consider forensic analysis of the WordPress installation for signs of compromise given the unauthenticated ACE nature.

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/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 W3 Total Cache is installed
    Check the WordPress admin under Plugins > Installed Plugins, or inspect the wp-content/plugins/w3-total-cache/ directory via file manager or SSH
    Affected if The plugin is present and active in the WordPress installation
  2. Identify the installed version
    Open the main plugin file (typically w3-total-cache/wp-content/plugins/w3-total-cache/w3-total-cache.php or check the plugin header in WordPress admin) and locate the 'Version:' field in the plugin comment header
    Affected if The version number displayed is 2.9.4 or lower (e.g., 2.9.4, 2.9.3, 2.9.2, etc.)
  3. Verify the plugin is publicly accessible
    Confirm the WordPress site is internet-facing and the /wp-content/plugins/w3-total-cache/ directory is accessible via HTTP/HTTPS without authentication
    Affected if The site is live and the plugin directory responds to unauthenticated requests
  4. Inspect for unauthorized code changes
    Compare the plugin files (especially PHP files in the w3-total-cache directory) against a clean installation of the same version, or review recent file modifications via the file system
    Affected if Any unexpected PHP files, modified core files, or backdoors are present in the plugin directory

The environment is affected if W3 Total Cache version 2.9.4 or lower is installed, active, and exposed to the internet without authentication required for the vulnerable endpoint.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade W3 Total Cache plugin to a version newer than 2.9.4 immediately. Consider forensic analysis of the WordPress installation for signs of compromise given the unauthenticated ACE nature.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $880
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,408.

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-2026-57623 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