The Shibboleth WordPress plugin before 2.5.4 does not fail closed when its HTTP header identity mode is enabled without an anti-spoofing key, treating any request that carries identity headers as an authenticated session without verifying them. On a deployment where untrusted client headers reach the application, an unauthenticated attacker can log in with forged identity headers and, when automatic account creation and the default administrator role mapping are enabled, create and sign in as a new administrator. Exploitation requires the non-default HTTP header attribute mode, an empty or absent spoof key, automatic account creation enabled, and a deployment that does not strip untrusted client headers before they reach the application.
CVE-2026-12281
Score 8.1 from GitHub Security Advisory (severity: HIGH) published 2026-07-15. CISA-ADP (Vulnrichment) CVSS v3.1 baseline 8.1; sources differ by 0.0.
- High severity, but no confirmed exploitation yet
No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.
- CVSS v3
- 8.1
- EG Score
- 8.1(high)
- EG Risk
- 37(Track)EG Risk 37/100SSVC: Track
EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).
How it’s computedSeverity81% × 45%Exploitation0% × 40%Automatability0% × 15%Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence. - EPSS PROB
- 0%
- EPSS %ILE
- 14%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
July 15, 2026
Last Modified
July 15, 2026
Advisory Details (1)
Auto-updated Jul 15, 2026Shibboleth < 2.5.4 – Unauthenticated Administrator Account Creation via Identity Header Spoofing | CVE 2026-12281 | Plugin Vulnerabilities
https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/8474eda4-6385-447a-9139-f57c049d1713/Vendor Advisories for CVE-2026-12281(1)
These vendors published their own advisory mentioning this CVE — often with vendor-specific remediation steps + affected product lists not in NVD.
Weakness Classification(1)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 24× in last 7d / 40× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
- 2026-07-31 12:23 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-30 23:11 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-30 23:11 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-30 16:27 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-30 10:00 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-30 10:00 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-30 01:30 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-29 20:49 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-29 06:53 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-28 17:41 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-28 17:41 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-28 15:36 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-28 04:30 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-27 15:17 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-27 15:17 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-27 14:13 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-27 00:49 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-27 00:49 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-26 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-26 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-26 11:38 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-26 11:38 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-25 14:17 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-24 14:17 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-23 14:18 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-23 03:05 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-22 14:08 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-21 15:24 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-20 17:08 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-19 14:30 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-19 02:28 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-18 10:04 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-17 06:47 UTCEG score recompute▲ 8.10
- 2026-07-17 06:47 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-07-16 17:02 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 16:57 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-15 10:44 UTCMITRE cvelistV5CVSS v3 → 8.1 · severity → HIGH
- 2026-07-15 06:20 UTCNVD update
- 2026-07-15 06:05 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-15 06:04 UTCMITRE cvelistV5first tracked
Related CVEs(same CWE)
Same CWE
10 shownCWE-287
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2026-12281?
When was CVE-2026-12281 disclosed?
Is CVE-2026-12281 actively exploited?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-12281?
How do I remediate CVE-2026-12281?
Dependency Blast Radius
Explore the affected products and dependency analysis for CVE-2026-12281
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