CVE-2026-97661
Received Received - Intake

Stored XSS in Business Essentials for Contact Form 7 WordPress Plugin

Publication date: 2026-10-01

Last updated on: 2026-10-01

Assigner: Wordfence

Description
The Business Essentials for Contact Form 7 plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting via 'gateway' Form Field in all versions up to, and including, 1.2.1 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. Exploitation requires the Payments module to be enabled and a form to be configured to accept both PayPal and Stripe as payment gateways.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-10-01
Last Modified
2026-10-01
Generated
2026-10-01
AI Q&A
2026-10-01
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-97661
EUVD
EUVD-2026-90574

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 2 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
contact_form_7 business_essentials to 1.2.1 (inc)
wpbe business_essentials_for_contact_form_7 to 1.2.1 (inc)

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 vulnerability is a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) flaw in the Business Essentials for Contact Form 7 WordPress plugin. It allows unauthenticated attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages via the 'gateway' form field. The issue arises due to insufficient input sanitization and output escaping in versions up to 1.2.1.

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, inspect WordPress sites using the Business Essentials for Contact Form 7 plugin versions up to 1.2.1. Check for forms configured with PayPal and Stripe gateways in the Payments module. Look for unexpected scripts in form fields, particularly the 'gateway' field.

Impact Analysis

An attacker could exploit this to inject scripts that run whenever a user visits an affected page. This could lead to theft of sensitive data, session hijacking, or defacement of your website. Exploitation requires the Payments module to be enabled and forms configured for PayPal and Stripe.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to unauthorized access to user data, potentially violating GDPR (data protection) and HIPAA (health information privacy) requirements. Organizations may face compliance penalties if user data is compromised due to this flaw.

Mitigation Strategies

Update the Business Essentials for Contact Form 7 plugin to the latest version. Disable the Payments module if not needed. Review forms for suspicious 'gateway' field entries and remove any unauthorized scripts. Monitor for unusual activity in affected forms.

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