CVE-2026-116522
Received Received - Intake

Stored XSS in Relevanssi WordPress Plugin

Publication date: 2026-10-31

Last updated on: 2026-10-31

Assigner: Wordfence

Description
The Relevanssi – A Better Search plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via the 'comment' parameter in all versions up to, and including, 4.28.5 due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to inject arbitrary web scripts in pages that will execute whenever a user accesses an injected page. This requires the site to have both the comment indexing and comment highlighting options enabled, and the payload only fires when a visitor reaches a singular page via a Relevanssi search-result permalink carrying the highlight query parameter.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-10-31
Last Modified
2026-10-31
Generated
2026-10-31
AI Q&A
2026-10-31
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-116522
EUVD
EUVD-2026-114599

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
comesio Relevanssi – A Better Search 0

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-79 The product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes user-controllable input before it is placed in output that is used as a web page that is served to other users.

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Executive Summary

This is a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Relevanssi WordPress plugin up to version 4.28.5. It allows unauthenticated attackers to inject malicious scripts via the comment parameter due to poor input sanitization and output escaping. The scripts execute when users visit pages via Relevanssi search-result links with a highlight query parameter. The site must have comment indexing and highlighting enabled for this to work.

Detection Guidance

Check if you are running Relevanssi plugin versions up to 4.28.5. Inspect server logs for unusual search result permalinks containing highlight query parameters with script payloads. Enable comment indexing and highlighting in plugin settings to test if injected scripts execute on singular pages.

Impact Analysis

An attacker could steal user sessions, redirect visitors to malicious sites, or deface your website. Visitors may have their sensitive data compromised if they interact with the injected scripts. The attack requires specific plugin settings to be enabled, but once exploited, it affects all users accessing the compromised pages.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to unauthorized access to user data, violating GDPR and HIPAA requirements for data protection and confidentiality. If exploited, it may result in data breaches, triggering mandatory breach notifications and potential fines under these regulations.

Mitigation Strategies

Update Relevanssi plugin to version 4.28.6 or later. Disable comment highlighting in plugin settings. Review and remove any suspicious scripts from comments or pages. Monitor for unauthorized changes in plugin files.

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