CVE Intelligence
Medium Privilege escalation

CVE-2026-104755 — WP Compress <= 7.25.00 - Unauthenticated Privilege Escalation to 'group'/'setting'/'value' Parameters on comms Endpoint

The WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in all versions up to, and including, 7.25.00 The vulnerability exists because the `start_comms` dispatcher (`wps_ic_comms::start_comms`), hooked on every front-end request, gates access only by comparing the caller-supplied `apikey` parameter against the stored plugin API key with no WordPress capability check and no nonce verification, then passes the unvalidated `group`, `setting`, and `value` parameters directly to `change_setting()`, which writes them into the `WPS_IC_SETTINGS` option without an allow-list. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to write arbitrary permission keys into the plugin's settings, causing `wps_ic_users::checkAndAddCaps()` to grant any WordPress role — including Subscriber — the `manage_wpc_settings` capability and thereby achieve plugin-administrator-equivalent control over the plugin's optimization, CDN, and critical-CSS surfaces. The API key required to pass the authorization check can itself be obtained without authentication via the `wpc_send_critical_remote` nopriv AJAX action: when the external critical-CSS service returns an `apiResults` field, `initCritical()` echoes the stored plugin API key back to the caller in a `wp_send_json_success` response, completing the exploit chain entirely without a WordPress login.

Published Oct 16, 2026 · Updated Oct 16, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: Wordfence

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.
How the score was calculated
  • Technical severity (medium)+3

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation
Not confirmed
Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.
EPSS FIRST
—
No EPSS score.
Affects
AresIT
WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization
CVSS base
4.8
Medium · 2 source(s)

CISA SSVC assessment CISA

Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.

Exploitation
None
none · proof-of-concept · active
Automatable
No
can an attacker script the kill-chain steps
Technical impact
Partial
partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

No fix documented by the sources we poll. That does not mean none exists: check the vendor advisory.

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

  1. Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (AresIT WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization).
  2. The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
  3. No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
  4. Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (privilege escalation), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
AresIT WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization ≤ 7.25.00 Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
High
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored by
4.8 CVSS 3.1 Medium 2.2 2.5 security@wordfence.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
4.8 CVSS 3.1 Medium — — Wordfence via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N (score shown at the top: security@wordfence.com)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-269 · Improper Privilege Management

Other CVEs with this weakness →

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

  • Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPS

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • SSVC assessment updated
    Oct 16, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Source status changed · Received → Deferred
    Oct 16, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Affected products added · aresit/wp compress – instant performance & speed optimization
    Oct 16, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Record published
    Oct 16, 2026
  • CVSS changed · 4.8
    Oct 16, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Received
    Oct 16, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 16, 2026 · Alertas do Telegram
  • CVE published
    Oct 16, 2026 · Wordfence

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 1× References added · Oct 16, 2026 – Oct 16, 2026
  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 16, 2026 – Oct 16, 2026

References

7 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

AresIT
every CVE for this vendor
Privilege escalation
same class
CWE-269
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-17608 WP Compress <= 7.10.09 - Cross-Site Request Forgery to Arbitrary Options Deletion Aug 16, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

  • No FIRST EPSS score.
  • No fixed version, patch or mitigation documented.
  • No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
  • No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
  • No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2026-104755 is "WP Compress <= 7.25.00 - Unauthenticated Privilege Escalation to 'group'/'setting'/'value' Parameters on comms Endpoint", rated Medium. It affects WP Compress – Instant Performance & Speed Optimization (AresIT); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 4.8 describes technical severity. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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