PublishPress Capabilities <= 2.50.0 - Authenticated (Editor+) Privilege Escalation to Fresh-Install Default Capability Grant
The PublishPress Capabilities – User Role Editor, Access Permissions, User Capabilities, Admin Menus plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 2.50.0. This is due to the addPluginCapabilities() function unconditionally granting the Editor role all 15 manage_capabilities_* capabilities — including manage_capabilities, manage_capabilities_roles, manage_capabilities_settings, and manage_capabilities_backup — via a hard-coded $eligible_roles = ['administrator', 'editor'] assignment that runs automatically on the first admin_init after plugin activation with no administrator opt-in, persisting the grants directly to the database. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers with Editor-level access to elevate their privileges to a site-wide capability manager, enabling them to create, rename, and delete non-system roles, modify capabilities of non-administrator roles, restore role backups, and write arbitrary plugin options whose names begin with cme_, capsman, pp_capabilities, or presspermit via update_option(). The escalation stops short of full Administrator access, as WordPress's map_meta_cap layer still prevents the escalated Editor from granting administrator-only capabilities to other roles; however, all role-management and plugin-settings functionality gated solely on manage_capabilities_* capabilities remains fully accessible.
Affected software
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| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress plugin | PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions | <= 2.50.0 | 2.50.1 |
References
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-269- Platform
- WordPress
- Package
PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions- Disclosed
- 08.09.2026
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 10:22
Sources and licenses
Wordfence Intelligence - 2f35ab5c-f897-404b-92ea-71bf1c98e0c0 - Wordfence Intelligence
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Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc.
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Vulnerability history: PublishPress Capabilities: User Role Access Control, Admin Area Permissions
All published vulnerabilities of this package (WordPress plugin), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.
- Total entries
- 9
- First → latest
- 06.2018 09.2026
- Without a fix
- 0
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- Critical 1
- High 3
- Medium 5
Disclosures per year
- 2018: 1
- 2019: 0
- 2020: 0
- 2021: 1
- 2022: 2
- 2023: 0
- 2024: 0
- 2025: 0
- 2026: 5
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PublishPress Capabilities <= 2.50.0 - Authenticated (Editor+) Privilege Escalation to Fresh-Install Default Capability Grant this entry
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