WordPress security changelog
HIGH CVE-2026-102173 Deferred

Kirki: Registration metadata reaches an image source attribute unescaped

With public user registration enabled and a published page containing a kirki-register element, an unauthenticated attacker can obtain the element nonce from public markup and submit malicious registration metadata. ExceptionalElements::image_element() places a user-meta value directly into an img src attribute without sufficient escaping. A page rendering a Kirki users collection whose image is bound to one of nine registration meta fields can then execute the stored script when viewed. The nine field names are not enumerated. Viewing the affected output is necessary despite UI:N in the vector. Affected versions: <= 6.3.1.

CVE / CNA score 7.2 CVSS 3.1 · security@wordfence.com
NVD score Pending NVD has not published its own CVSS assessment.
Component
Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer
Plugin slug
kirki
Affected
<= 6.3.1
Safe version
See mitigation notes
Published
Oct 07, 2026
Weakness
CWE-79 — Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')

This CVE was published Oct 07, 2026 and is one of 42 known issues for this plugin.

What to do

Update, patch or deactivate.

This archive could not verify a fixed version from the official author release notes reviewed on 2026-10-13. Disable the affected feature or component where practical until remediation for the deployed configuration is established. Disable the affected feature or deactivate the component until a confirmed fix is available. Application-level remediation: Validate registration metadata by field type and escape image URLs and attributes at ExceptionalElements::image_element(). Remove malicious stored metadata; disable public registration or the affected registration/collection features until a confirmed fix is available. A publicly exposed nonce is not an authorization boundary. Official author release notes: https://wordpress.org/plugins/kirki/.

No confirmed safe version is listed. Consider a vendor-supported patch or temporarily restricting the affected functionality while you assess the risk.

Deactivate only when warranted by your risk profile, or when advised by your hosting provider in the limited circumstances where the vulnerability cannot otherwise be mitigated. If you’re unsure which action is appropriate, contact Fused or your hosting provider for guidance.

Source record

Technical description

The Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via registration metadata in all versions up to, and including, 6.3.1 This is due to insufficient escaping in `ExceptionalElements::image_element()`, which concatenates a user-meta value straight into an `<img src="…">` attribute. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to inject arbitrary web scripts that execute whenever a user accesses a page rendering a Kirki users collection whose image element is bound to one of the nine registration meta fields. Requires public user registration to be enabled and a published page carrying a `kirki-register` element, which prints the required element nonce into the public markup.

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

References

Primary and upstream sources