# CVE-2022-36394: WordPress Contest Gallery plugin <= 17.0.4 - Authenticated SQL Injection (SQLi) vulnerability

> Authenticated attackers with author privileges can exploit SQL injection in the Contest Gallery plugin to read or modify database contents.

- **Severity:** High 7.6 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 23 Aug 2022
- **Updated:** 28 Apr 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-r388-2x2x-393f

## What is CVE-2022-36394?

CVE-2022-36394 is a high-severity SQL injection vulnerability in Contest Gallery (WordPress plugin), published on 23 Aug 2022. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Authenticated (author+) SQL Injection (SQLi) vulnerability in Contest Gallery plugin <= 17.0.4 at WordPress.

Weakness: CWE-89 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-36394?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Contest-Gallery Contest Gallery.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-36394?

No fix has been published for CVE-2022-36394 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2022-36394 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-36394 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Contest Gallery (WordPress plugin)

- [CVE-2024-11103](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-11103/): Contest Gallery <= 24.0.7 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary Password Reset to Privilege Escalation/Account Takeover (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2024-10687](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-10687/): SQL injection in Contest Gallery – Upload & Vote Photos, Media, Sell with PayPal & Stripe (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-5974](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-5974/): Cross-site request forgery in Contest Gallery (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2024-32778](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-32778/): WordPress Contest Gallery plugin <= 21.3.4 - Arbitrary File Deletion vulnerability (high 8.5)
- [CVE-2024-30236](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-30236/): WordPress Contest Gallery plugin <= 21.3.4 - SQL Injection vulnerability (high 8.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2022-36394 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-36394 is a high-severity SQL injection vulnerability in Contest Gallery (WordPress plugin), published on 23 Aug 2022. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-36394 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Contest Gallery (WordPress plugin). No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-36394/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-36394/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-36394
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-36394
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-36394

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-36394/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.