CVE-2026-22409 is a medium-severity authorization bypass vulnerability affecting Mikado-Themes Justicia, a WordPress theme product, specifically versions up to 1.2. The root cause is an incorrectly configured access control mechanism that relies on a user-controlled key, allowing attackers with limited privileges (PR:L) to bypass authorization checks. This means that a user who already has some level of access can manipulate certain keys or parameters to escalate their privileges or access restricted resources without proper authorization. The vulnerability does not require user interaction (UI:N) and can be exploited remotely (AV:N). The impact primarily affects confidentiality and integrity, as unauthorized users may view or modify data they should not have access to, but it does not affect availability. No known public exploits exist yet, and no official patches have been published. The vulnerability was published on January 22, 2026, and is tracked under CVE-2026-22409 with a CVSS v3.1 score of 5.4, reflecting a medium risk level. The issue stems from the theme's access control design, which fails to properly validate or restrict user-controlled keys that gate access to sensitive functions or data. This type of vulnerability is particularly concerning in multi-user WordPress environments where different user roles exist, as it can lead to privilege escalation or unauthorized data exposure.

For European organizations using Mikado-Themes Justicia, this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive website content, user data, or administrative functions, undermining confidentiality and integrity. Attackers with limited privileges could escalate their access, potentially leading to data leaks, unauthorized content changes, or exposure of internal information. This could damage organizational reputation, violate data protection regulations such as GDPR, and result in compliance penalties. Since the vulnerability does not affect availability, denial-of-service is less of a concern. However, the unauthorized access risks are significant for sectors relying heavily on WordPress-based websites for customer interaction, e-commerce, or internal portals. The absence of known exploits reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially as attackers may develop exploits once details become widely known. Organizations with multi-user WordPress environments are particularly at risk, as the vulnerability exploits user-controlled keys that may be manipulated by authenticated users.

1. Immediately audit and review access control configurations in Mikado-Themes Justicia installations to identify and restrict user-controlled keys that influence authorization decisions. 2. Limit the privileges of users who can interact with these keys, ensuring the principle of least privilege is enforced. 3. Monitor logs for unusual access patterns or attempts to manipulate authorization keys. 4. Implement web application firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block suspicious parameter tampering related to authorization keys. 5. Apply principle of defense-in-depth by segregating sensitive functions and data, minimizing exposure even if authorization is bypassed. 6. Stay alert for official patches or updates from Mikado-Themes and apply them promptly once released. 7. Educate administrators and developers about secure access control practices to prevent similar misconfigurations. 8. Consider temporary disabling or restricting features that rely on user-controlled keys until a patch is available. 9. Conduct penetration testing focused on authorization bypass scenarios to validate mitigations.