What the vulnerability does
01Description
The WordPress PayPal Donation plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via the 'donate' shortcode in all versions up to, and including, 1.01. This is due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping on user-supplied shortcode attributes such as 'amount', 'email', 'title', 'return_url', 'cancel_url', 'ccode', and 'image'. The wordpress_paypal_donation_create() function uses extract(shortcode_atts(...)) to process shortcode attributes and then directly interpolates these values into HTML output within single-quoted attribute values without any escaping. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Contributor-level access and above, to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user accesses an injected page.
Explanation of Vulnerability in Simple Terms
02Summary
The WordPress PayPal Donation plugin versions 1.01 and earlier contain a cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability. An authenticated user with low privileges can inject malicious scripts that execute in other users' browsers, including site administrators. The vulnerability has scope change, meaning the impact extends beyond the plugin itself to affect the broader site.
What an attacker can do
03Attacker Capabilities
Inject malicious scripts that run in other users' browsers, potentially stealing session tokens or admin credentials.
Potential impact on your site
04Site Impact
Authenticated attackers can compromise admin accounts and take control of your site without needing to exploit additional vulnerabilities.
Conditions required to exploit
05Prerequisites
Attacker must have a low-privilege WordPress account (e.g., subscriber or contributor role).
Key dates
06Disclosure timeline
March 21, 2026
CVE published
April 8, 2026
Record updated
