Weakness (CWE)
CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory
The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.
More detail
Many file operations are intended to take place within a restricted directory. By using special elements such as ".." and "/" separators, attackers can escape outside of the restricted location to access files or directories that are elsewhere on the system. One of the most common special elements is the "../" sequence, which in most modern operating systems is interpreted as the parent directory of the current location. This is referred to as relative path traversal. Path traversal also covers the use of absolute pathnames such as "/usr/local/bin" to access unexpected files. This is referred to as absolute path traversal.
How to prevent it (8 mitigations)
-
Implementation
Assume all input is malicious. Use an "accept known good" input validation strategy, i.e., use a list of acceptable inputs that strictly conform to specifications. Reject any input that does not strictly conform to specifications, or transform it into something that does.
When performing input validation, consider all potentially relevant properties, including length, type of input, the full range of acceptable values, missing or extra inputs, syntax, consistency across related fields, and conformance to business rules. As an example of business rule logic, "boat" may be syntactically valid because it only contains alphanumeric characters, but it is not valid if the input is only expected to contain colors such as "red" or "blue."
Do not rely exclusively on looking for malicious or malformed inputs. This is likely to miss at least one undesirable input, especially if the code's environment changes. This can give attackers enough room to bypass the intended validation. However, denylists can be useful for detecting potential attacks or determining which inputs are so malformed that they should be rejected outright.
When validating filenames, use stringent allowlists that limit the character set to be used. If feasible, only allow a single "." character in the filename to avoid weaknesses such as CWE-23, and exclude directory separators such as "/" to avoid CWE-36. Use a list of allowable file extensions, which will help to avoid CWE-434.
Do not rely exclusively on a filtering mechanism that removes potentially dangerous characters. This is equivalent to a denylist, which may be incomplete (CWE-184). For example, filtering "/" is insufficient protection if the filesystem also supports the use of "\" as a directory separator. Another possible error could occur when the filtering is applied in a way that still produces dangerous data (CWE-182). For example, if "../" sequences are removed from the ".../...//" string in a sequential fashion, two instances of "../" would be removed from the original string, but the remaining characters would still form the "../" string.
-
Architecture and Design
For any security checks that are performed on the client side, ensure that these checks are duplicated on the server side, in order to avoid CWE-602. Attackers can bypass the client-side checks by modifying values after the checks have been performed, or by changing the client to remove the client-side checks entirely. Then, these modified values would be submitted to the server.
-
Implementation
Inputs should be decoded and canonicalized to the application's current internal representation before being validated (CWE-180). Make sure that the application does not decode the same input twice (CWE-174). Such errors could be used to bypass allowlist validation schemes by introducing dangerous inputs after they have been checked.
Use a built-in path canonicalization function (such as realpath() in C) that produces the canonical version of the pathname, which effectively removes ".." sequences and symbolic links (CWE-23, CWE-59). This includes:
- realpath() in C
- getCanonicalPath() in Java
- GetFullPath() in ASP.NET
- realpath() or abs_path() in Perl
- realpath() in PHP
-
Architecture and Design
Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid [REF-1482].
-
Operation
Use an application firewall that can detect attacks against this weakness. It can be beneficial in cases in which the code cannot be fixed (because it is controlled by a third party), as an emergency prevention measure while more comprehensive software assurance measures are applied, or to provide defense in depth [REF-1481].
-
Architecture and Design, Operation
Run your code using the lowest privileges that are required to accomplish the necessary tasks [REF-76]. If possible, create isolated accounts with limited privileges that are only used for a single task. That way, a successful attack will not immediately give the attacker access to the rest of the software or its environment. For example, database applications rarely need to run as the database administrator, especially in day-to-day operations.
-
Architecture and Design
When the set of acceptable objects, such as filenames or URLs, is limited or known, create a mapping from a set of fixed input values (such as numeric IDs) to the actual filenames or URLs, and reject all other inputs.
For example, ID 1 could map to "inbox.txt" and ID 2 could map to "profile.txt". Features such as the ESAPI AccessReferenceMap [REF-185] provide this capability.
-
Architecture and Design, Operation
Run the code in a "jail" or similar sandbox environment that enforces strict boundaries between the process and the operating system. This may effectively restrict which files can be accessed in a particular directory or which commands can be executed by the software.
OS-level examples include the Unix chroot jail, AppArmor, and SELinux. In general, managed code may provide some protection. For example, java.io.FilePermission in the Java SecurityManager allows the software to specify restrictions on file operations.
This may not be a feasible solution, and it only limits the impact to the operating system; the rest of the application may still be subject to compromise.
Be careful to avoid CWE-243 and other weaknesses related to jails.
Source: MITRE CWE-22
587 results · Clear filters · Feed
-
High 7.5CVE-2026-51134 Public exploit
The C-MOR Video Surveillance web interface (up to version 6.0104) is vulnerable to Path Traversal via the 'cam' paramet…
-
High 7.8CVE-2026-84568 Public exploit
A path traversal issue was addressed with improved path validation. This issue is fixed in macOS Golden Gate 27, macOS …
-
Critical 10.0
Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') in GitLab
GitLab has remediated an issue in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions from 18.7 before 18.11.12, 19.0 before 19.0.9, 19.1 before 19.1.8, 19.2 before 19.2.6, and 19.3 before 19.3.2 that, under certain conditions, an unauthenticated user could have read arbitra…
KEV Sep 11, 2026 -
High 7.5CVE-2025-57231 Public exploit
Path Traversal in avatar attachments in Docmost v0.21.0 allows an unauthenticated malicious actor to disclose local fil…
-
High 7.2CVE-2026-74239 Public exploit
XenForo < 2.3.13 Path Traversal via Style Archive Importer on Windows
XenForo before 2.3.13 contains a path traversal vulnerability in the style archive importer on Windows deployments that allows authenticated non-super administrators with style permissions to write arbitrary files outside the intended extraction directory by …
-
High 8.7CVE-2026-67281 Public exploit
Unauthenticated file read in Mikrotik RouterOS
RouterOS WebFig contains an unauthenticated file-read vulnerability in the /jsproxy path where a newly allocated session retains a stale uninitialized principal pointer used for file authorization. An unauthenticated attacker can prepare the allocator so that…
-
Medium 4.9CVE-2026-52832 Public exploit
Nuclio: Unauthenticated path traversal in spec.handler allows arbitrary file write in Dashboard container
Nuclio is a "Serverless" framework for Real-Time Events and Data Processing. Prior to version 1.16.5, Nuclio Dashboard exposes POST /api/functions without authentication by default (NOP auth mode). The spec.handler field (e.g., mymodule:myfunction) is parsed …
-
Critical 9.0CVE-2026-75604 Public exploit
Next.js: Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution on windows-hosted servers
Next.js is a React framework for building full-stack web applications. From 13.4.0 until 15.5.24 and 16.3.3, Next.js applications using Pages Router or App Router without Cache Components on Windows-hosted servers do not consistently escape backslashes in rou…
-
High 7.5CVE-2026-19952 Public exploit
Frontend Admin by DynamiApps <= 3.29.12 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Deletion via Path Traversal via custom_directory_name Merge Tag
The Frontend Admin by DynamiApps plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion due to insufficient file path validation in the move_folders function in all versions up to, and including, 3.29.12. This makes it possible for unauthenticated atta…
-
High 7.5CVE-2026-56718 Public exploit
AJCloud AJY IPC Firmware Path Traversal via jdbhttpd
AJCloud AJY IPC firmware prior to version 01.10715.11.37 contains a path traversal vulnerability in the jdbhttpd web service that allows unauthenticated remote attackers to read arbitrary files with root privileges by supplying path traversal sequences in the…
-
High 8.6CVE-2026-82286 Public exploit
gpt-crawler Arbitrary File Write via outputFileName Parameter
gpt-crawler through 1.5.1 fails to validate the outputFileName parameter in the POST /crawl endpoint, allowing unauthenticated attackers to write arbitrary files to any filesystem path. Attackers can supply absolute paths or parent-directory segments to overw…
-
High 8.8CVE-2026-76639 Public exploit
Unitree G1 EDU 1.5.2 Unauthenticated RCE via DDS Bridge and Path Traversal
Unitree G1 EDU firmware through 1.5.2 contains an unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability that allows network-adjacent attackers to execute arbitrary commands as root by chaining three weaknesses: an unauthenticated WebRTC-to-DDS bridge on TCP por…
-
Critical 9.8CVE-2026-47884 Public exploit
Spring Framework Improper Path Limitation in XsltView
Use of XsltView in a Spring MVC application can result in SSRF and RCE attack if the application has an "/**" mapping that results in view rendering, and where the view name is not explicitly specified. Spring Framework 7.0.0 - 7.0.8 Spring Framework 6.2.0 - …
-
Medium 6.5CVE-2026-37066 Public exploit
Path traversal leading to Arbitrary File Read in /vfm-admin/index.php and /vfm-admin/ajax/streamvid.php in Veno File Ma…
-
High 8.1CVE-2026-37068 Public exploit
Arbitrary file write in /vfm-admin/index.php?section=translations&action=update in Veno File Manager Project 4.4.9 allo…
-
High 7.5CVE-2026-36851 Public exploit
Path traversal vulnerability in UnPoller 2.33.0 password field allows arbitrary file read and network exfiltration.
-
Critical 9.8CVE-2026-19912 Public exploit
CVE-2026-19912
The Kaltura HTML5 player (mwEmbed / html5lib) contains an unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability caused by unsafe data deserialization and unsanitized filesystem path construction. mwEmbedLoader.php accepts a user‑controlled ServiceUrl, whose res…
-
High 7.4CVE-2026-76844 Public exploit
zlib 1.2.11 through 1.3.2 Heap Buffer Overflow via Stale gzwrite Pointer After Failed Write
zlib 1.2.11 through 1.3.2 contains a heap buffer overflow: after an underlying write() fails, gz_write() returns without resetting strm.next_in, leaving it pointed at the caller's buffer. A later gz* write call then derives a position from the stale pointer a…
-
High 8.5CVE-2026-10053 Public exploit
Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') in GitLab
GitLab has remediated an issue in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions from 18.8 before 19.0.6, 19.1 before 19.1.4, and 19.2 before 19.2.2 that under certain conditions could have allowed an authenticated user to achieve remote code execution due to a path tra…
-
High 7.1CVE-2026-17106 Public exploit
Tar extraction in moby/go-archive can write outside the destination directory via link following
The tar extraction routines in moby/go-archive (Unpack, UnpackLayer, Untar/UntarUncompressed, and the ApplyLayer helpers) do not confine filesystem operations to the destination directory. The extractor decides where each archive entry lands using lexical str…
-
Critical 9.8CVE-2026-47627 Public exploit
NVIDIA Triton Inference Server for Linux contains a vulnerability where an attacker could cause path traversal. A succe…
-
High 8.7CVE-2026-75855 Public exploit
ArcadeDB before 26.8.1 Path Traversal via create/drop database
ArcadeDB versions before 26.8.1 fail to sanitize database names in the POST /api/v1/server endpoint's create database and drop database commands, allowing authenticated root users to write and delete arbitrary files outside the configured database directory. …
-
Medium 5.1CVE-2026-52886 Public exploit
Notepad++: session.xml backupFilePath starts_with Bypass
Notepad++ is a free and open-source source code editor. Prior to 8.9.7, Notepad++ validates the backupFilePath attribute from session.xml with std::wstring::starts_with against the expected backup directory without path normalization, allowing parent-director…
-
Medium 5.3
Authenticated users may write data outside the intended Docker cache path
An authenticated user may write data outside the intended Docker cache path under specific remote-repository conditions.
KEV Aug 27, 2026 -
Critical 9.8CVE-2026-73034 Public exploit
DB-GPT v0.8.1 Path Traversal Arbitrary File Write via user_id Header
DB-GPT v0.8.1 contains an unauthenticated path traversal vulnerability that allows remote attackers to write arbitrary files to any location on the server by injecting directory traversal sequences into the user_id HTTP header of the Python file-upload endpoi…
-
Medium 6.3CVE-2026-71557 Public exploit
go-git: Malicious reference names may modify files outside the reference storage
go-git is an extensible git implementation library written in pure Go. Prior to 5.19.2 and 6.0.0-alpha.5, reference names are not sanitized before being used to construct on-disk paths under the reference storage directory, so a maliciously crafted reference …
-
Critical 9.8CVE-2026-19264 Public exploit
Unauthenticated arbitrary file read via /uploads path traversal (URL-encoded separators) leading to instance takeover
Postiz is an open-source social media scheduling tool. The route that serves locally stored media joins URL-supplied path segments onto the upload directory and streams the file without normalising the path or confining it to that directory, and the route req…
-
High 8.2CVE-2026-66491 Public exploit
Joomla Extension - phoca.cz - Arbitrary File Read in Phoca Commander 1.0.0-6.1.3
Joomla Extension - phoca.cz - Arbitrary File Read in Phoca Commander 1.0.0-6.1.3 - Improper limitation of paths in the getSource function lead to an arbitrary file read vulnerability.
-
Medium 6.1CVE-2026-66492 Public exploit
Joomla Extension - phoca.cz - Path Traversal vulnerability in Phoca Commander 1.0.0-6.1.3
Joomla Extension - phoca.cz - Path Traversal vulnerability in Phoca Commander 1.0.0-6.1.3 - Improper limitation of paths in the file upload action lead to path a traversal vulnerability.
-
Medium 6.4CVE-2026-66493 Public exploit
Joomla Extension - phoca.cz - Path traversal vulnerability in Phoca Commander 1.0.0-6.1.3
Joomla Extension - phoca.cz - Path Traversal vulnerability in Phoca Commander 1.0.0-6.1.3 - Improper limitation of paths for delete, copy and move actions lead to path traversal vulnerabilities.
-
High 8.6CVE-2026-18953 Public exploit
Improper limitation of a pathname to a restricted directory in aws-transform-mcp-server
Improper limitation of a pathname to a restricted directory in the get_resource tool in Amazon awslabs.aws-transform-mcp-server 0.1.0 through 0.1.4 might allow a context-dependent actor to write arbitrary files outside the intended working directory via the s…
-
Medium 6.5CVE-2026-9335 Public exploit
Improper Handling of HDF5 ExternalLinks in keras-team/keras
A vulnerability in keras-team/keras versions <= 3.14.0 allows arbitrary local HDF5 file content disclosure due to improper handling of HDF5 ExternalLinks. The `KerasFileEditor` and `keras.saving.load_weights` functions bypass the `safe_get_h5_group` and `safe…
-
Critical 9.8CVE-2026-52680 Public exploit
Apache Kyuubi: REST batch multipart upload path traversal allows controlled file write
Apache Kyuubi REST batch multipart upload handling uses the client-supplied multipart filename when creating a temporary uploaded resource. A remote attacker who can access the REST batch upload endpoint can provide path traversal sequences in the filename an…
-
Critical 9.8
vCenter directory-traversal vulnerability
VMware vCenter contains a directory traversal vulnerability in the Syslog server. A malicious actor with network access to vCenter may exploit this issue to execute arbitrary code.
KEV Aug 18, 2026 -
High 7.5CVE-2026-67185 Public exploit
TinyWeb 0.0.8 Path Traversal via URL Path Component
TinyWeb through 0.0.8 contains a path traversal vulnerability that allows unauthenticated attackers to read arbitrary files by submitting ../ sequences in the URL path, which are concatenated directly to the configured web root in HttpBuilder::buildResponse()…
-
Low 1.8CVE-2026-40000 Public exploit
Path Traversal Vulnerability in ZTE Blade A75 5G
The Activity zte.com.cn.filer/zte.com.cn.filer.FilePreViewActivity within ZTE File Manager is designed to preview compressed files. Third-party applications can launch this Activity and supply arbitrary file paths (e.g., content://zte.com.cn.filer.fileprovide…
-
High 7.5CVE-2026-65694 Public exploit
Microweber CMS 2.0.20 Path Traversal via ServeStaticFileController
Microweber CMS through 2.0.20 contains a path traversal vulnerability in the static file controller that allows unauthenticated remote attackers to read arbitrary files by supplying directory traversal sequences in the path query parameter. Attackers can send…
-
High 7.8CVE-2026-65600 Public exploit
Traefik before v2.11.52 Authentication Bypass via ReplacePathRegex
Traefik versions <= v2.11.51, >= v3.6.0 <= v3.6.22, and >= v3.7.0 <= v3.7.6 contain an authentication bypass via path traversal in the ReplacePathRegex middleware. When ReplacePathRegex is configured with a regex that captures user-controlled path segments wi…
-
High 8.4CVE-2026-64824 Public exploit
Home Assistant Core < 2026.7.0 Symlink Path Traversal RCE via backup-restore
Home Assistant Core before 2026.7.0 contains a path traversal vulnerability in the backup-restore function that allows attackers to write files to arbitrary absolute filesystem paths by supplying a crafted tar archive with a SYMTYPE entry containing a benign …
-
Medium 6.3CVE-2026-16219 Public exploit
Croogo CMS Admin File Manager FileManager.php isEditable path traversal
A flaw has been found in Croogo CMS up to 4.0.7. This affects the function FileManager::isEditable of the file FileManager/src/Utility/FileManager.php of the component Admin File Manager. This manipulation causes path traversal. The attack can be initiated re…