dbcve.org
Missing AuthorizationWeakness · CWE-862

CVE-2026-8848

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-07-09
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
78/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable Zero-click 6 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
The Popup Maker – Boost Sales, Conversions, Optins, Subscribers with the Ultimate WP Popup Builder plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass in all versions up to, and including, 1.22.0. This is due to the plugin not properly verifying that a user is authorized to perform an action. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with editor-level access and above, to install and activate an arbitrary plugin from an attacker-controlled URL, leading to remote code execution. Exploitation requires that a valid Popup Maker Pro license is active on the target site and that Popup Maker Pro is not yet installed, as these conditions are necessary for the legacy v1/connect/info endpoint to issue the bearer token used to satisfy the install endpoint's only non-spoofable validation check.

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 Popup Maker WordPress plugin versions up to 1.22.0 contain an authorization bypass vulnerability in the legacy v1/connect/info endpoint. When a valid Popup Maker Pro license is active but Pro is not yet installed, this endpoint issues a bearer token. Authenticated users with editor-level access or higher can exploit this token to bypass the install endpoint's validation and install/activate arbitrary plugins from attacker-controlled URLs, achieving remote code execution.

MitigationUpdate Popup Maker plugin to version 1.22.1 or later. Until updated, limit user roles to below editor and monitor for unauthorized plugin installations.

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/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. Check Popup Maker plugin version
    Navigate to WordPress admin > Plugins > Installed Plugins and locate 'Popup Maker'. Verify the installed version against 1.22.0. Any version at or below 1.22.0 is affected.
    Affected if Popup Maker version is 1.22.0 or lower
  2. Confirm Pro license is active
    Check Popup Maker plugin settings or database options for license status. Look for evidence that a Pro license key has been activated.
    Affected if A valid Popup Maker Pro license is marked as active in the system
  3. Verify Pro addon installation status
    Check if Popup Maker Pro addon is installed and activated. Go to Plugins and look for 'Popup Maker Pro' or 'Popup Maker Pro Addon'. Compare this against the license status from the previous step.
    Affected if Pro license is active BUT Pro addon is NOT installed or activated
  4. Audit recent plugin installations
    Review WordPress activity logs, server access logs, or plugin installation history for any unauthorized plugin installations. Check /wp-admin/plugin-install.php?tab=upload and look for recently uploaded or installed plugins.
    Affected if New plugins appear that were not intentionally installed by an administrator
  5. Check for suspicious API endpoint activity
    Review server logs for requests to /?rest_route=/pum/v1/connect/info and /?rest_route=/pum/v1/connect/install endpoints. Look for unusual bearer token usage or unexpected plugin download attempts.
    Affected if API calls to the connect endpoints originate from authenticated users without proper authorization

You are affected if Popup Maker version is 1.22.0 or lower AND a Pro license is active while the Pro addon remains uninstalled, indicating the vulnerable configuration exists in your environment.

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 Popup Maker plugin to version 1.22.1 or later. Until updated, limit user roles to below editor and monitor for unauthorized plugin installations.

Recommended fix High confidence

Popup Maker version 1.22.1 or later

  1. 1. Log in to the WordPress admin dashboard with administrator privileges
  2. 2. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
  3. 3. Locate the 'Popup Maker' plugin in the list
  4. 4. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to upgrade to version 1.22.1 or later
  5. 5. Alternatively, download the latest version from the WordPress plugin repository at https://wordpress.org/plugins/popup-maker/
  6. 6. Deactivate and delete the old version, then upload and activate the new version
  7. 7. Verify the update was successful by checking the plugin version in the installed plugins list

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
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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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-2026-8848 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