Rank Math SEO PRO 3.0.123 - Unauthenticated Embedded Malicious Code
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- 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-506.
Summary
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.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- 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
- 2026-10-19 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-111862
- 2026-10-20 Alias added: GHSA-6qfj-hq55-w68p
- 2026-10-20 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Other 5
- https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/81cd7a2c-ad0c-4dbc-b5dc-07ec866d5c1f?source=cve
- https://rankmath.com/kb/pro-3-0-123-security-incident/
- https://rankmath.com/changelog/
- https://urlscan.io/result/01a145c2-8dc8-72ff-a65d-21209ca29c4f/
- https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/domain/rank1cdn.com
More rankmath vulnerabilities
- TI-2024-04306 Rank Math SEO < 1.0.219 - Authenticated Stored XSS CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.5
- TI-2020-09234 The Rank Math plugin through 1.0.40.2 for WordPress allows unauthenticated remote… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2022-16715 WordPress Rank Math SEO plugin <= 1.0.95 - Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) vulnerability CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2026-81669 Rank Math SEO plugin PHP object injection leads to code execution CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2023-09687 WordPress Rank Math SEO plugin <= 1.0.107.2 - Local File Inclusion vulnerability CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2024-12272 Cross-site scripting in rankmath Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 6.4
Sources
- CVE-2026-111862 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-111862 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-6qfj-hq55-w68p · 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