9.8
CRITICAL CVSS 3.1
CVE-2026-111862
Rank Math SEO PRO 3.0.123 - Unauthenticated Embedded Malicious Code
Description

Rank Math SEO PRO for WordPress is affected by a supply-chain compromise in a subset of version 3.0.123 packages downloaded or updated between October 15, 2026 at 20:02 UTC and October 16, 2026 at 07:12 UTC. Rank Math states that the affected plugin files contained malware that could compromise a website if the plugin was activated and directs sites that activated an affected package to treat the website as compromised. The malware may establish persistent access, communicate with rank1cdn[.]com, recreate hidden backdoors on page visits, and expose WordPress credentials, database credentials, API keys, and other secrets accessible to the web server. Rank Math identifies three malicious wp_options keys, hidden PHP backdoors, unauthorized administrator accounts, a fake WordPress core file, PHP-executable .cache files, and a system cron marker as incident indicators. Only packages obtained during the vendor-confirmed window are claimed as affected; version 3.0.123 alone is not sufficient to establish compromise. Rank Math removed the affected files and released version 3.0.124 as the clean replacement.

INFO

Published Date :

Oct. 19, 2026, 5:17 p.m.

Last Modified :

Oct. 19, 2026, 5:17 p.m.

Remotely Exploit :

Yes !
Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-111862 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

No affected product recoded yet

CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 3.1 CRITICAL MITRE-CVE
CVSS 3.1 CRITICAL [email protected]
Solution
Update Rank Math SEO PRO to version 3.0.124 to remove malicious files and protect your website.
  • Update Rank Math SEO PRO to version 3.0.124.
  • Scan your website for indicators of compromise.
  • Change all user passwords and API keys.
  • Review your website for unauthorized changes.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-111862 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-111862 weaknesses.

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-111862 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

  • The Hacker News
Popular WordPress SEO Plugin Rank Math PRO Hijacked to Deliver Self-Restoring Backdoor

Copies of Rank Math PRO, the paid version of the Rank Math SEO plugin for WordPress, that were downloaded from rankmath.com or delivered as updates between 20:02 UTC on October 15 and 07:12 UTC on Oct ... Read more

Published Date: Oct 19, 2026 (2 hours, 15 minutes ago)

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-111862 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • New CVE Received by [email protected]

    Oct. 19, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Description Rank Math SEO PRO for WordPress is affected by a supply-chain compromise in a subset of version 3.0.123 packages downloaded or updated between October 15, 2026 at 20:02 UTC and October 16, 2026 at 07:12 UTC. Rank Math states that the affected plugin files contained malware that could compromise a website if the plugin was activated and directs sites that activated an affected package to treat the website as compromised. The malware may establish persistent access, communicate with rank1cdn[.]com, recreate hidden backdoors on page visits, and expose WordPress credentials, database credentials, API keys, and other secrets accessible to the web server. Rank Math identifies three malicious wp_options keys, hidden PHP backdoors, unauthorized administrator accounts, a fake WordPress core file, PHP-executable .cache files, and a system cron marker as incident indicators. Only packages obtained during the vendor-confirmed window are claimed as affected; version 3.0.123 alone is not sufficient to establish compromise. Rank Math removed the affected files and released version 3.0.124 as the clean replacement.
    Added CVSS V3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
    Added CWE CWE-506
    Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/111xxx/CVE-2026-111862.json">CVE-2026-111862</a>
    Added Reference https://rankmath.com/changelog/
    Added Reference https://rankmath.com/kb/pro-3-0-123-security-incident/
    Added Reference https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/domain/rank1cdn.com
    Added Reference https://urlscan.io/result/01a145c2-8dc8-72ff-a65d-21209ca29c4f/
    Added Reference https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/81cd7a2c-ad0c-4dbc-b5dc-07ec866d5c1f?source=cve
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.