Kali Forms <= 2.4.20 - Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution via 'thisPermalink' Field Parameter
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- Code execution
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- No fix listed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA. Impact type from CWE-94.
Summary
The Kali Forms — Contact Form & Drag-and-Drop Builder plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution in all versions up to, and including, 2.4.20 via the _save_data function. This is due to insufficient validation of the 'thisPermalink' field value before it overwrites a trusted callable placeholder, allowing attacker-controlled strings to reach call_user_func() in _save_data(). This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to execute code on the server. Exploitation requires the target form to define a field with a name matching one of the reserved placeholder keys ('thisPermalink', 'entryCounter', or 'submission_link'), as check_if_placeholders_changed() only processes POST keys present in the form's field_type_map.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Total
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
No fixed version listed by the sources yet.
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-16144
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-w9gv-h9qh-63cm
References
Other 12
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/9d692aff-8bb2-45bb-9caf-bc33d3ed5b10?source=cve
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.20/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L1033
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.20/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L172
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.20/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L277
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.20/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L976
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.20/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L90
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.19/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L1033
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.19/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L172
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.19/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L277
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.19/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L976
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/kali-forms/tags/2.4.19/Inc/Frontend/class-form-processor.php#L90
- https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/changeset?reponame=&old=3623024%40kali-forms&new=3623024%40kali-forms
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- TI-2021-05950 WordPress Download Monitor plugin <= 4.4.6 - Auth. Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 4.8
- TI-2026-03090 Kali Forms <= 2.4.9 - Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution via form_process CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
Sources
- CVE-2026-16144 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-16144 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-w9gv-h9qh-63cm · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences