Weakness (CWE)
CWE-73: External Control of File Name or Path
The product allows user input to control or influence paths or file names that are used in filesystem operations.
How to prevent it (8 mitigations)
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Architecture and Design
When the set of filenames is limited or known, create a mapping from a set of fixed input values (such as numeric IDs) to the actual filenames, 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 provide this capability.
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Architecture and Design, Operation
Run your code in a "jail" or similar sandbox environment that enforces strict boundaries between the process and the operating system. This may effectively restrict all access to files within a particular directory.
Examples include the Unix chroot jail and AppArmor. In general, managed code may provide some protection.
This may not be a feasible solution, and it only limits the impact to the operating system; the rest of your application may still be subject to compromise.
Be careful to avoid CWE-243 and other weaknesses related to jails.
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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.
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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.
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Implementation
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).
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Installation, Operation
Use OS-level permissions and run as a low-privileged user to limit the scope of any successful attack.
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Operation, Implementation
If you are using PHP, configure your application so that it does not use register_globals. During implementation, develop your application so that it does not rely on this feature, but be wary of implementing a register_globals emulation that is subject to weaknesses such as CWE-95, CWE-621, and similar issues.
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Testing
Use tools and techniques that require manual (human) analysis, such as penetration testing, threat modeling, and interactive tools that allow the tester to record and modify an active session. These may be more effective than strictly automated techniques. This is especially the case with weaknesses that are related to design and business rules.
Source: MITRE CWE-73
382 results · Clear filters · Feed
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High 7.8
PassMark PerformanceTest, BurnInTest, and OSForensics Physical Memory Disclosure via DirectIo64.sys IOCTL
PassMark PerformanceTest before 11.1 build 1012, BurnInTest before 11.1 build 1000, and OSForensics before 11.1 build 1016 contain an information disclosure vulnerability in DirectIo64.sys that allows unauthenticated local attackers to dump complete physical …
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High 7.1
PassMark PerformanceTest, BurnInTest, and OSForensics Kernel Null Pointer Dereference via DirectIo64.sys IOCTL
PassMark PerformanceTest before 11.1 build 1012, BurnInTest before 11.1 build 1000, and OSForensics before 11.1 build 1016 contain an unauthenticated physical memory disclosure in DirectIo64.sys, reachable by unprivileged local users through a single IOCTL wi…
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High 7.5
surya 0.22.1 Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Read via screenshot server
surya 0.22.1 screenshot server contains an unauthenticated arbitrary file read vulnerability in the /info, /page, and /process routes that accept raw file_path parameters. Attackers can read any image or PDF file on the host by supplying arbitrary file paths …
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High 7.5
Xinference 3.3.0 Unauthenticated Arbitrary-Path File Read via /v1/models/llm/auto-register
Xinference (affected commit 4a94832, v3.x) contains an unauthenticated arbitrary-path file read vulnerability in the POST /v1/models/llm/auto-register endpoint, which accepts a caller-supplied model_path parameter without authentication or path confinement. T…
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High 7.2
An arbitrary file deletion vulnerability in the /adminapi/file/video_data_save component of CRMEB v6.0.0 allows authent…
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High 8.8
DbGate through 7.2.6 Arbitrary File Read and Write via file:// jslid
DbGate fails to validate jslid parameters in the jsldata controller, allowing authenticated users to read and write arbitrary files via file:// scheme resolution. Attackers can exploit getJslFileName() to bypass directory containment and access sensitive file…
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High 8.1
AVideo through c91b5975d CSRF and Path Traversal via stopLive.php
AVideo through commit c91b5975d contains a cross-site request forgery and path traversal vulnerability in stopLive.php that allows attackers to delete directories by exploiting missing token validation and unsanitized key parameter concatenation. Attackers ca…
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High 7.3
WWBN AVideo Unauthenticated Arbitrary Log File Deletion
WWBN AVideo contains a path traversal vulnerability in the API get_api_login_code endpoint that allows unauthenticated attackers to delete arbitrary .log files by supplying directory traversal sequences in the code parameter. Attackers can exploit this to des…
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High 7.5
Laravel Excel writes exports outside the configured filesystem disk when given a caller-controlled path
Laravel Excel provides supercharged Excel exports and imports in Laravel. From 3.1.8 until 3.1.70, in src/Files/Disk.php the Maatwebsite\Excel\Files\Disk::copy() method resolves the caller-controlled $destination supplied through Excel::store(), $export->stor…
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High 7.3
Authenticated Arbitrary File Write Vulnerability Leading to Remote Code Execution in AOS-CX
An authenticated arbitrary file write vulnerability exists in AOS-CX. Successful exploitation could allow an authenticated malicious actor, under specific conditions outside the attacker's control and following a required action by another user, to create or …
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High 7.2
Authenticated Insecure File Handling allows Remote Code Execution in HPE Networking Fabric Composer API
Insecure file operations in the API of HPE Networking Fabric Composer could allow an authenticated remote attacker to achieve remote code execution. Successful exploitation could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary commands as a privileged user on the unde…
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High 7.2
Authenticated Arbitrary File Write Vulnerability leads to Remote Code Execution in HPE Networking Fabric Composer
An arbitrary file write vulnerability exists in the API of HPE Networking Fabric Composer and could allow an authenticated administrative user to escalate privileges. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability may enable the attacker to execute arbitrary s…
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High 7.1
pnpm: pacquet trust-lockfile install can create dependency symlinks outside the project
## Summary A crafted lockfile alias could reach several install-time filesystem joins. With `--trust-lockfile` or a frozen lockfile, traversal segments could create links outside the intended project or `node_modules` boundary. This patch validates dependency…
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High 7.5
pnpm: A tarball dependency's manifest `name` escapes node_modules → arbitrary file write/overwrite on install
pnpm is a package manager. Prior to 10.34.5 and 11.11.0, pnpm accepts a scoped path traversal in a tarball dependency's package.json manifest name because pnpm11/resolving/npm-resolver/src/pickPackage.ts rejects slash characters only for unscoped names. Durin…
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High 7.1
nodemailer before 9.0.1 File Read and SSRF via raw option
nodemailer before 9.0.1 fails to apply disableFileAccess and disableUrlAccess flags to message-level raw option, allowing authenticated attackers to read arbitrary files or perform server-side request forgery by supplying path or href properties. Attackers ca…
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High 7.5
Shared Files < 1.7.70 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Read
The shared-files-pro WordPress plugin before 1.7.70 does not validate the file path supplied when creating a featured image, allowing unauthenticated attackers to read arbitrary files from the server and republish their contents at a public URL.
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High 8.1
Trilium arbitrary file read and denial of service via file:// URLs in the automatic image-download feature
Trilium is an open-source hierarchical note-taking application. In versions prior to 0.104.0, the automatic image-download feature accepts file:// URLs in a note's img tags and reads the referenced local file with no path validation, allowing any authenticate…
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High 7.1
NLTK before 3.10.3 Hardlink File Overwrite via downloader
NLTK versions before 3.10.3 contain a filesystem containment bypass vulnerability in the Downloader.download and Downloader.incr_download methods that allows attackers to overwrite files outside the install root through pre-existing hardlinks. Attackers with …
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High 7.0
NLTK through 3.10.3 Path Traversal via Model-Artifact APIs
NLTK through 3.10.3 contains a path traversal vulnerability in model-artifact APIs that bypass pathsec enforcement by using raw file operations on caller-controlled paths. Attackers can read or write files outside allowed sandbox roots through TransitionParse…
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High 7.5CVE-2026-16444 Public exploit
Improper Validation of File Paths in TeamViewer Desktop Clients
Improper neutralization of path traversal sequences in TeamViewer Desktop Clients prior Version 15.81.5 allows an authenticated remote session participant to write files to unintended locations on the local file system via file transfer or virtual file clipbo…
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High 8.7
Order Tip for WooCommerce < 1.6.0 - Shop Manager+ Arbitrary File Deletion via delete_exported_csv_file_ajax
The Order Tip for WooCommerce WordPress plugin before 1.6.0 does not check the capability of the user requesting a file deletion, nor does it restrict which path may be deleted, allowing users with the Shop Manager role and above to delete arbitrary files on …
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High 8.7
TypeBot: Arbitrary server file read via Send Email block attachment path
Typebot is an open-source chatbot builder. In self-hosted versions prior to 3.18.0, the server-side Send Email integration block allows arbitrary reading of local files on the server. The block builds Nodemailer attachments from a typebot variable, and its pa…
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High 7.1
sublinear-time-solver: Arbitrary file write in consciousness-explorer / sublinear-time-solver MCP export_state
sublinear-time-solver is a Rust and WebAssembly library for solving asymmetric diagonally dominant systems in sublinear time. Prior to consciousness-explorer 1.1.2 and sublinear-time-solver 1.6.0, the export_state and import_state tools in src/consciousness-e…
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High 7.5
CVE-2026-19913
The Kaltura HTML5 player (mwEmbed / html5lib) contains a local file disclosure vulnerability due to improper validation of the ServiceUrl parameter in mwEmbedLoader.php. This parameter is used as the base URL for a backend request and accepts non‑HTTP schemes…
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High 8.2
NLTK 3.10.2 Path Traversal via corpus-reader constructors
NLTK versions before 3.10.3 contain a path sandbox bypass vulnerability in corpus-reader constructors that allows attackers to read files outside the intended data root. Attackers can supply arbitrary corpus root paths to LinThesaurusCorpusReader and PanLexLi…
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High 7.1
PraisonAI: Arbitrary file write via unsanitized `user_id` in `FileMemory.__init__()` — path traversal to any writable location
PraisonAI is a multi-agent teams system. Prior to praisonaiagents 1.6.58, the FileMemory constructor joins unsanitized user_id into self.user_path. A caller supplying ../ or path separators can escape the memory directory and write JSON data to arbitrary proc…
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High 7.5
GitPython before 3.1.59 Path Traversal via separate-git-dir
GitPython before 3.1.59 omits --separate-git-dir from unsafe_git_clone_options, allowing attackers to create arbitrary git directories outside the intended clone destination. Attackers can pass a separate_git_dir parameter to Repo.clone_from() or Repo.clone()…
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High 8.4
GitPython before 3.1.59 Local File Content Disclosure via .gitmodules
GitPython before 3.1.59 fails to disable merge_includes when parsing .gitmodules, allowing attackers to disclose local file content by including arbitrary file paths via [include] directives. Attackers can craft a malicious .gitmodules file with include direc…
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High 7.5
exceljs through 4.4.0 Path Traversal via Unvalidated addImage filename
exceljs through 4.4.0 contains a path traversal vulnerability in the Workbook.addImage() function that fails to validate file paths. Attackers can supply arbitrary file paths to read any file accessible to the Node.js process and embed it in the generated wor…
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High 7.8
Recce server has unauthenticated SQL execution that allows local file read/write through DuckDB
Recce is a data-validation toolkit for enhanced dbt (data build tool) PR review. Prior to version 1.50.0, OSS server deployments that expose the server to an untrusted network without authentication are vulnerable to unauthenticated SQL execution through the …
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High 8.1
Atlantis: Path Traversal in Atlantis Workspace Handling Allows Out-of-Bounds Directory Deletion/Creation
Atlantis is a self-hosted golang application that listens for Terraform pull request events via webhooks. From 0.19.8 until 0.45.0, Atlantis does not consistently validate user-controlled workspace values supplied through accepted repository-level atlantis.ya…
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High 7.0
OctoPrint: File exfiltration possible via query parameters on upload endpoints
OctoPrint provides a web interface for controlling consumer 3D printers. Prior to 1.11.8 and 2.0.0rc3, OctoPrint's custom Tornado upload handler and Flask with Werkzeug parse request parameters differently, allowing an attacker with FILE_UPLOAD permission to …
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High —
NocoBase: Arbitrary File Write chained with Local file Inclusion leads to Remote code execution
## Executive Summary Two vulnerabilities were identified and chained to achieve authenticated remote code execution The first vulnerability allows any authenticated admin to redirect the file upload storage root to an arbitrary path on disk including the appl…
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High 8.1
Kata-containers: insufficient validation of createcontainer mount and storage rules in genpolicy
A flaw was found in Kata Containers. In configurations utilizing genpolicy for Confidential Containers guest protection, a malicious host operator can exploit insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules. This allows them to mount arbitr…
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High 7.5
claude-faf-mcp has an arbitrary local file read/write via unconfined `path` argument in FAF tools
### Summary `claude-faf-mcp` MCP tools accept a caller-controlled `path` argument and resolve it (`~` expansion + `path.resolve()`) straight into a filesystem read/write **without confining it to a trusted project directory**. An absolute path or `../` traver…
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High 7.5
faf-mcp has an arbitrary local file read/write via unconfined `path` argument in FAF tools
### Summary `faf-mcp` MCP tools accept a caller-controlled `path` argument and resolve it (`~` expansion + `path.resolve()`) straight into a filesystem read/write **without confining it to a trusted project directory**. An absolute path or `../` traversal is …
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High 7.5
grok-faf-mcp has an arbitrary local file read via unconfined `path` argument in FAF tools
### Summary Several `grok-faf-mcp` MCP tools accept a caller-controlled `path` argument and resolve it (`~` expansion + `path.resolve()`) straight into a filesystem read **without confining it to a trusted project directory**. An absolute path or `../` traver…
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High 8.2
GitPython before 3.1.58 Path Traversal via .gitmodules Submodule Name
GitPython before 3.1.58 fails to validate submodule names from .gitmodules files, allowing attackers to create Git repositories at arbitrary filesystem paths outside the intended clone directory. Attackers can craft malicious repositories with traversal seque…
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High 8.4
Streambert: Arbitrary Directory Creation and File Manipulation via Backup Handler
Streambert is a cross-platform Electron Desktop App to stream and download video content. Prior to 2.6.0, the perform-scheduled-backup IPC handler in src/ipc/storage.js takes settings.path from a renderer-supplied object and uses the resulting directory for f…
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High 8.8
Streambert: Local File Exfiltration and Overwrite via Subtitle file: Protocol
Streambert is a cross-platform Electron Desktop App to stream and download video content. Prior to 2.5.0, the downloadSubtitleFile utility in src/ipc/downloads.js, reached through the run-download IPC channel, accepts a renderer-supplied subtitle url using th…