WordPress security changelog
MEDIUM CVE-2026-16759 Deferred

Tutor LMS course filtering permits unauthenticated PHP function execution

Tutor LMS through 4.0.5 exposes tutor_course_filter_ajax without authorization. Attacker-controlled POST keys reach extract() in tutor_load_template(), overwrite template, method_map and context variables, and invoke an arbitrary zero-argument PHP function; calling WordPress edit_user() can create a persistent Subscriber account from request parameters.

CVE / CNA score 6.5 CVSS 3.1 · security@wordfence.com
NVD score Pending NVD has not published its own CVSS assessment.
Component
Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution
Plugin slug
tutor
Affected
<= 4.0.5
Safe version
See mitigation notes
Published
Aug 28, 2026
Weakness
CWE-74 — Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component ('Injection')

This CVE was published Aug 28, 2026 and is one of 46 known issues for this plugin.

What to do

Update, patch or deactivate.

No fixed release is encoded in this CVE record. Update Tutor LMS when a release after 4.0.5 is confirmed to fix the issue and audit unexpected Subscriber accounts and course-filter AJAX requests.

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 Tutor LMS – eLearning and online course solution plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution limited to zero-argument function invocation in all versions up to, and including, 4.0.5 via the tutor_course_filter_ajax AJAX action. This is due to missing authorization on the handler combined with unsanitized array keys being passed to extract() inside tutor_load_template(), allowing attacker-controlled POST data to overwrite the local $template variable and, in the resulting templates/single-content-loader.php template, the $method_map and $context variables invoked at $method_map[$context](). This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to call an arbitrary zero-argument PHP function server-side and, via WordPress core edit_user(), to create a persistent subscriber-level account from request parameters.

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

References

Primary and upstream sources