Description

The MCP Server for WordPress WordPress plugin before 1.8.2 does not perform an object-level authorization check on one of its workflow REST routes, allowing users with the Contributor role to disclose the title and publication status of any post, page or custom post type, including other users' private, draft, pending and scheduled content.

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "2.7",
  "pubDate": "2026-09-26T07:17:03.333Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-09-26T07:17:03.333Z",
  "executiveSummary": "The MCP Server for WordPress plugin prior to version 1.8.2 is susceptible to an Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR) vulnerability resulting from missing object-level authorization checks within its REST API workflow routes.\nThis vulnerability enables authenticated users with the Contributor role to perform unauthorized information disclosure.\nBy manipulating requests to specific REST API endpoints, an attacker can enumerate and access sensitive metadata, including the titles and current publication statuses of private, draft, pending, or scheduled content belonging to other users.\nThe impact is a breach of content confidentiality, potentially exposing sensitive editorial strategies or private information prior to public release.\nThe vulnerability requires low-privileged authentication (Contributor) and does not require complex social engineering, as it leverages the native functionality of the plugin's REST API implementation.",
  "technicalDetails": "The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the insufficient enforcement of access control policies within the plugin's REST API controller.\nWhile the API routes are registered and require basic authentication, the underlying handler for specific workflow-related routes fails to perform a secondary, granular authorization check to ensure that the requester possesses the appropriate capability to access or query the target object.\nIn the WordPress ecosystem, a Contributor-level user typically has restricted permissions; however, due to the missing object-level check, the API endpoint responds to queries regardless of the post's visibility or ownership status.\nAn attacker can exploit this by crafting HTTP requests targeting the vulnerable workflow REST route. By iterating through post identifiers or querying the route for post lists, the API returns sensitive object metadata—specifically the post title and the publication status—that should be restricted to users with edit_posts or administrative capabilities.\nThe attack flow proceeds as follows: 1. The authenticated attacker identifies the vulnerable REST API endpoint associated with the MCP Server workflow functionality. 2. The attacker sends a GET request to this endpoint. 3. Because the server fails to validate if the authenticated user has permission to read the specific post object, the REST controller processes the request and executes a database query for the requested content.\nThe application then serializes the internal post objects into a JSON response, which is returned to the attacker. This exposes non-public information, including drafts or scheduled posts, which are intended to remain confidential.\nThe vulnerability persists in all versions of the MCP Server for WordPress plugin prior to 1.8.2. Since the REST API is exposed to all authenticated users, the attack vector is available through standard network requests to the site’s REST API namespace.\nThe post-exploitation impact allows for the unauthorized reconnaissance of the site's unpublished content, which can be leveraged to understand private workflows, unreleased marketing assets, or sensitive site architecture before they are intended to be made public."
}