CVE-2026-19801
Received Received - Intake

Authorization Bypass in BetterLinks WordPress Plugin

Publication date: 2026-08-25

Last updated on: 2026-08-25

Assigner: Wordfence

Description
The BetterLinks – Link Shortener, Link Cloaking, Redirects, Affiliate Link Manager & MCP plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass in all versions up to, and including, 3.1.0. This is due to the plugin not properly verifying that a user is authorized to perform an action. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level access and above, to create arbitrary BetterLinks short URLs with attacker-controlled slugs and redirect destinations, enabling phishing and SEO abuse. Exploitation requires the Fluent Boards companion plugin to be installed and active (so that the FLUENT_BOARDS constant is defined), and is further facilitated by the betterlinks_admin_nonce nonce being emitted on every frontend page via wp_localize_script, making it accessible to any authenticated user.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-08-25
Last Modified
2026-08-25
Generated
2026-08-25
AI Q&A
2026-08-25
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-19801
EUVD
EUVD-2026-65193

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
betterlinks betterlinks to 3.1.0 (inc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-862 The product does not perform an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.

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Executive Summary

The BetterLinks WordPress plugin up to version 3.1.0 has an authorization bypass flaw. This allows authenticated users with subscriber-level access or higher to create malicious short URLs with attacker-controlled slugs and redirect destinations. The vulnerability is exploited when the Fluent Boards companion plugin is active, and the betterlinks_admin_nonce is exposed on every frontend page.

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, check if the BetterLinks plugin version is up to 3.1.0 or lower. Verify if the Fluent Boards companion plugin is installed and active. Inspect WordPress sites for unauthorized short URLs with suspicious slugs or redirect destinations.

Impact Analysis

Attackers could create phishing links or manipulate SEO by redirecting users to malicious sites. This could lead to credential theft, malware distribution, or damage to website reputation. The impact is limited to users with subscriber access or higher.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to data breaches if phishing links are used to steal user credentials or sensitive data. Organizations may face compliance violations under GDPR (data protection) or HIPAA (healthcare data) if user data is compromised through such attacks.

Mitigation Strategies

Update the BetterLinks plugin to the latest version beyond 3.1.0 to patch the authorization bypass vulnerability. If immediate update is not possible, disable the BetterLinks plugin and the Fluent Boards companion plugin until an update is applied.

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