# CVE-2026-19991: UsersWP <= 1.2.70 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Arbitrary File Deletion

> Authenticated attackers can delete arbitrary files on the server via path traversal in the UsersWP WordPress plugin.

- **Severity:** High 8.1 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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:** 11 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 11 Sep 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-mw4c-2xg7-r9h8

## What is CVE-2026-19991?

CVE-2026-19991 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in stiofansisland UsersWP – Front-end login form, User Registration, User Profile & Members Directory plugin for WP, published on 11 Sep 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The UsersWP plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Arbitrary File Deletion in versions up to, and including, 1.2.70 via the upload_file_remove() AJAX handler. The plugin stores the value of an account 'file' form field taken directly from $_POST when no real $_FILES upload is provided (process_account() calls uwp_validate_fields() and array_merges the result with the empty output of UsersWP_Files::validate_uploads()). At storage time the value is only checked with validate_file(), which passes any string that does not contain a literal '../'. When the value is later processed by upload_file_remove(), it is again gated with validate_file() and then normalized through uwp_get_file_relative_url(); that helper performs a global str_replace() of the uploads base URL against the stored URL, allowing a crafted URL containing embedded '..<uploads-baseurl>' tokens to collapse into '../../' traversal sequences after the last validation. The transformed value is then appended to the uploads base directory and passed to wp_delete_file() without any canonical containment check. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level access and above, to delete arbitrary files on the affected site's server (including wp-config.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-19991?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-19991?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-19991 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-19991 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-19991 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-19991 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-19991 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in stiofansisland UsersWP – Front-end login form, User Registration, User Profile & Members Directory plugin for WP, published on 11 Sep 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-2026-19991 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: stiofansisland UsersWP – Front-end login form, User Registration, User Profile & Members Directory plugin for WP. 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-2026-19991/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-19991/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-19991
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-19991
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-19991

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-19991/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.