# CVE-2026-18438: File upload in Templately – Elementor & Gutenberg Template Library: 6500+ Free & Pro Ready Templates And Cloud!

> Authenticated contributors can achieve remote code execution by uploading malicious files due to filename validation mismatches in the Templately WordPress plugin.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 15 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 17 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-wqqc-79qg-345q

## What is CVE-2026-18438?

CVE-2026-18438 is a high-severity vulnerability in wpdevteam Templately – Elementor & Gutenberg Template Library: 6500+ Free & Pro Ready Templates And Cloud!, published on 15 Aug 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The Templately – Elementor & Gutenberg Template Library: 6500+ Free & Pro Ready Templates And Cloud! plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution in all versions up to, and including, 3.7.1 via the fetch_remote_file function. This is due to a filename validation/destination mismatch in fetch_remote_file, where file type validation is performed against the attacker-controlled Content-Disposition filename rather than the URL-path-derived destination filename. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with contributor-level access and above, to execute code on the server. A GIF+PHP polyglot file passes wp_check_filetype_and_ext validation as image/gif via the Content-Disposition filename, while the actual destination path is written with a .php extension derived from the URL path, bypassing the unfiltered_upload capability gate entirely. The affected endpoints are reachable at this privilege level because Templately's entire REST API — including the cloud import endpoints used in this attack (/templately/v1/clouds/upload and /templately/v1/insert) — is authorized only by a current_user_can('delete_posts') check, with no administrator or manage_options capability requirement. The same permission gate also allows a contributor to overwrite the site's global Templately cloud connection via the /templately/v1/login endpoint with global_signin set to true. A complete remediation should both correct fetch_remote_file to validate the file type against the actual destination filename rather than the Content-Disposition header (and avoid deriving the write path from the request URL), and restrict state-changing Templately REST routes to an appropriate administrator-level capability.

Weakness: CWE-434 (Unrestricted Upload of File with Dangerous Type)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-18438?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-18438?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-18438 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-18438 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-18438 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-18438 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-18438 is a high-severity vulnerability in wpdevteam Templately – Elementor & Gutenberg Template Library: 6500+ Free & Pro Ready Templates And Cloud!, published on 15 Aug 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-18438 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: wpdevteam Templately – Elementor & Gutenberg Template Library: 6500+ Free & Pro Ready Templates And Cloud!. 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-2026-18438/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-18438/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-18438
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-18438
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-18438

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-18438/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.