CVE-2026-71294
Cotonti CMS Comments Plugin PHP Object Injection via Unrestricted unserialize() in Create/Edit Actions
Description
Cotonti CMS's Comments plugin deserializes user-supplied data without restricting the classes that may be instantiated. In plugins/comments/controllers/actions/CreateAction.php, a `ci` POST parameter obtained via `cot_import('ci', 'P', 'TXT')` (trim-only sanitization) is passed to `unserialize(base64_decode($ci))` with no `allowed_classes` restriction, reachable by any member with write access to comments (the default `Auth_members => 'RW'` setting in plugins/comments/comments.setup.php). In plugins/comments/controllers/actions/EditAction.php, a `cb` parameter is similarly deserialized via `unserialize(base64_decode($this->comeback))` in prepareComeBack(), reachable by any member editing their own comment. Because unserialize() is called without allowed_classes, an attacker can construct a serialized PHP object of any class loaded by Cotonti (a PHP Object Injection primitive). This was demonstrated in practice using Cotonti's own MySQL_cache class: a crafted serialized MySQL_cache object, once deserialized and later garbage-collected, triggers its __destruct()->flush() chain, causing an attacker-controlled INSERT INTO cot_cache with attacker-chosen row values — confirming genuine POP-chain exploitation, with further impact (including potential RCE) contingent on other gadget chains available in a given Cotonti installation's loaded classes. A third sink in DeleteAction.php contains the identical unserialize() pattern but is gated behind an admin-only authorization check and is not reachable by ordinary members.
INFO
Published Date :
Aug. 5, 2026, 1:24 p.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 5, 2026, 1:24 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
Yes !
Source :
309f9ea4-e3e9-4c6c-b79d-e8eb01244f2c
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2026-71294
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
| Score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability Score | Impact Score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH | 309f9ea4-e3e9-4c6c-b79d-e8eb01244f2c |
Solution
- Update the Cotonti CMS Comments plugin.
- Avoid unserializing user-supplied data.
- Sanitize all user inputs.
- Limit class instantiation during deserialization.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2026-71294.
| URL | Resource |
|---|---|
| https://github.com/Cotonti/Cotonti | |
| https://github.com/Cotonti/Cotonti/blob/master/plugins/comments/controllers/actions/CreateAction.php |
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-71294 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-2026-71294
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-2026-71294 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-71294 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 309f9ea4-e3e9-4c6c-b79d-e8eb01244f2c
Aug. 05, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Affected [{'vendor': 'Cotonti', 'product': 'Cotonti', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '0', 'versionType': 'custom', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['plugins/comments/controllers/actions/CreateAction.php', 'plugins/comments/controllers/actions/EditAction.php'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}] Added Description Cotonti CMS's Comments plugin deserializes user-supplied data without restricting the classes that may be instantiated. In plugins/comments/controllers/actions/CreateAction.php, a `ci` POST parameter obtained via `cot_import('ci', 'P', 'TXT')` (trim-only sanitization) is passed to `unserialize(base64_decode($ci))` with no `allowed_classes` restriction, reachable by any member with write access to comments (the default `Auth_members => 'RW'` setting in plugins/comments/comments.setup.php). In plugins/comments/controllers/actions/EditAction.php, a `cb` parameter is similarly deserialized via `unserialize(base64_decode($this->comeback))` in prepareComeBack(), reachable by any member editing their own comment. Because unserialize() is called without allowed_classes, an attacker can construct a serialized PHP object of any class loaded by Cotonti (a PHP Object Injection primitive). This was demonstrated in practice using Cotonti's own MySQL_cache class: a crafted serialized MySQL_cache object, once deserialized and later garbage-collected, triggers its __destruct()->flush() chain, causing an attacker-controlled INSERT INTO cot_cache with attacker-chosen row values — confirming genuine POP-chain exploitation, with further impact (including potential RCE) contingent on other gadget chains available in a given Cotonti installation's loaded classes. A third sink in DeleteAction.php contains the identical unserialize() pattern but is gated behind an admin-only authorization check and is not reachable by ordinary members. Added CVSS V3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:L Added CWE CWE-502 Added Reference https://github.com/Cotonti/Cotonti Added Reference https://github.com/Cotonti/Cotonti/blob/master/plugins/comments/controllers/actions/CreateAction.php