LifterLMS WP LMS plugin: PHP Object Injection via custom lesson data
Summary
LifterLMS for WordPress up to and including 10.2.1 does not safely handle untrusted serialized input when lessons are created. An authenticated user with the edit_course capability, such as an Instructor, Instructor's Assistant, LMS Manager or Administrator, can inject a PHP object. The plugin itself has no usable gadget chain, so code execution, file deletion or data theft is only possible if another installed plugin or theme provides one.
Affected
- LifterLMS (WP LMS for eLearning, Online Courses, & Quizzes) up to and including 10.2.1
- 10.2.0 may also be affected (unconfirmed)
- Exploitation requires an account with the edit_course capability
Fixed in
Unknown. No fixed version has been confirmed. Trac changeset 3729229 suggests a fix in trunk, but the release containing it is not known.
Workaround
Unknown. No vendor-confirmed workaround found.
- Restrict the edit_course capability to the fewest possible accounts
- Review Instructor and LMS Manager accounts
- Make sure open registration cannot grant these roles
Exploitation
- No known exploitation in the wild
- No public proof of concept found
- CISA SSVC: exploitation none, not automatable, total technical impact
- EPSS about 0.45 percent
Our recommendation
- Check the installed LifterLMS version and update to the latest release from wordpress.org once a fixed version is confirmed
- Audit users with the edit_course capability and remove unneeded accounts
- Inventory other installed plugins and themes and remove unused ones, since they may provide a POP chain
- Monitor the vendor and NVD for advisories and status changes
Public exploits
PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit and Exploit-DB list nothing for this CVE.
Research sources
- Wordfence threat intelligence entry www.wordfence.com
- Trac changeset 3729229 (trunk fix) plugins.trac.wordpress.org
- Trac source 10.2.1 builder class, line 1218 plugins.trac.wordpress.org
- VulDB entry 416065 vuldb.com
- VulDB CVE page vuldb.com
- HOL Guard CVE entry hol.org
- Strix CVE entry www.strix.ai
- Vulners VulnCheck/VULNRICHMENT entry vulners.com
Researched and written up in English and German by an AI (Claude by Anthropic) based on NVD, CISA, EPSS and the sources listed. The vendor information is authoritative. Researched on 31 Oct 2026, 20:48.
Original description (NVD)
The LifterLMS – WP LMS for eLearning, Online Courses, & Quizzes plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to PHP Object Injection in all versions up to, and including, 10.2.1 via deserialization of untrusted input . This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with custom-level access and above, to inject a PHP Object. No known POP chain is present in the vulnerable software, which means this vulnerability has no impact unless another plugin or theme containing a POP chain is installed on the site. If a POP chain is present via an additional plugin or theme installed on the target system, it may allow the attacker to perform actions like delete arbitrary files, retrieve sensitive data, or execute code depending on the POP chain present. This vulnerability is only exploitable during lesson creation when a temporary lesson ID triggers the custom metadata path, and requires the attacker to hold a role with the edit_course capability, such as Instructor, Instructor's Assistant, LMS Manager, or Administrator.
NVD references (6)
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/lifterlms/tags/10.2.1/includes/admin/class.llms.admin.builder.php#…
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/lifterlms/tags/10.2.1/includes/admin/class.llms.admin.builder.php#…
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/lifterlms/tags/10.2.1/includes/admin/class.llms.admin.builder.php#…
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/lifterlms/tags/10.2.1/includes/admin/class.llms.admin.builder.php#…
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset/3729229/lifterlms/trunk/includes/admin/class.llms.admin.builder.…
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/cc7893ee-414d-4796-bb34-4d83951b95bd?source=cve
Sources
The tracker combines official, freely usable data sources – updated continuously:
- NVD (NIST) – CVEs, rating (CVSS), affected products
- CISA KEV – vulnerabilities confirmed by CISA as actively exploited
- CISA Vulnrichment – CISA assessment (SSVC) in the official CVE record
- FIRST EPSS – probability of exploitation
- Microsoft MSRC – Patch Tuesday: vulnerabilities, severity, updates
- PoC-in-GitHub – public proof-of-concept repositories
- Metasploit (Rapid7) – modules of the Metasploit Framework
- Exploit-DB (OffSec) – archive of public exploits (links only)
- Patch days: official vendor pages (linked per vendor) (Vendor patch days)
This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS data © FIRST.org.
Affected? We can help.
We check whether your systems are affected, install updates and close the gap – continuously with the System Health Checker if you wish.