CVE-2026-8840: Booking calendar, Appointment Booking System <= 3.2.36 - Missing Authorization to Unauthenticated Arbitrary Modification via wpdevart_payment AJAX Action
The Booking calendar, Appointment Booking System plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to authorization bypass in all versions up to, and including, 3.2.36. This is due to the plugin not properly verifying that a user is authorized to perform an action. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to mark arbitrary reservations as paid or completed, cancel legitimate payments, auto-approve reservations, and trigger transactional booking emails by writing attacker-supplied payment status and transaction data directly into the payments table. The auto-approval of reservations is only triggered when the 'enablepsuccessapproval' site option is enabled, but payment status manipulation and email dispatch are exploitable regardless of that setting.
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade
Booking calendar, Appointment Booking System (WordPress plugin)to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 3.2.36 - Compensating control
If site option 'enable_psuccess_approval' is enabled, disable it to prevent auto-approval of reservations (auto-approval is only triggered when 'enable_psuccess_approval' is enabled).
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2026-8840?
The severity of CVE-2026-8840 is rated as medium with a score of 5.3.
How do I fix CVE-2026-8840?
To fix CVE-2026-8840, upgrade the Booking calendar, Appointment Booking System plugin to version 3.2.37 or later.
What kind of vulnerabilities does CVE-2026-8840 introduce?
CVE-2026-8840 introduces an authorization bypass vulnerability, allowing unauthenticated users to make arbitrary modifications.
Which versions of the Booking calendar, Appointment Booking System are affected by CVE-2026-8840?
CVE-2026-8840 affects all versions of the Booking calendar, Appointment Booking System plugin up to and including 3.2.36.
What action should I take if my site is using a vulnerable version related to CVE-2026-8840?
If your site is using a vulnerable version related to CVE-2026-8840, you should immediately update the plugin to a secure version.