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
825 results · Feed
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Medium 5.5
PraisonAI before 1.6.78 Path Traversal via config.toml
PraisonAI (pip package praisonaiagents) before 1.6.78 automatically loads defaults from a project-local .praisonai/config.toml when constructing an Agent, and does not validate the defaults.output.output_file path. A repository-controlled config file can set …
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High 7.7
Phantom: Arbitrary file write and decode-bomb DoS via unconfined MCP tool paths
### Impact In Phantom <= 1.3.0, when `PHANTOM_OUTPUT_DIR` was unset (the default), the MCP tools accepted arbitrary absolute output paths with no confinement. Anything able to send tool calls (e.g. an AI agent driving the MCP interface) could **write or overw…
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High 8.6
Appium: Unauthenticated arbitrary file/directory deletion in @appium/storage-plugin
Appium is a cross-platform automation framework for all kinds of apps, built on top of the W3C WebDriver protocol. Prior to 1.1.6, the Appium storage plugin exposes POST /storage/delete, whose handler passes the user-supplied name value directly into path.joi…
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Medium 6.8
Composio SDK < 0.2.32-beta.283 - Sensitive File Upload via tool-file-uploads.ts
Composio SDK before 0.2.32-beta.283 contains a path validation bypass vulnerability that allows attackers to read and exfiltrate sensitive files by exploiting a missing assertSafeFileUploadPath check in the readFileFromDisk function within tool-file-uploads.t…
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Low 2.1
LiteLLM: Local file read via request-supplied OIDC file references
LiteLLM is a proxy server (AI Gateway) to call LLM APIs in OpenAI (or native) format. Prior to 1.83.10-stable, LiteLLM's /health/test_connection endpoint resolved request-supplied environment and OIDC file references in litellm_params, allowing a proxy admini…
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High 7.5
App::Ack versions through 3.10.0 for Perl read arbitrary files via --files-from in a project .ackrc
App::Ack versions through 3.10.0 for Perl read arbitrary files via --files-from in a project .ackrc. ack searches up the directory hierarchy from the current directory for a project .ackrc and loads its options. The project-source option blocklist in App::Ack…
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High 7.5
AMP for WP <= 1.1.12 - Authenticated (Author+) Arbitrary File Write via Role-Based Access Configuration with Local Font Upload
The AMP for WP – Accelerated Mobile Pages plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Arbitrary File Write in versions up to and including 1.1.12. This is due to unsafe ZIP file extraction in the ampforwp_save_local_font() function combined with inadequate cleanup …
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Medium 6.5
EGroupware Vulnerable to Local File Inclusion via file:// URI in Mail Compose
### Summary The function processes image URLs embedded in an HTML email body without validating or restricting URI schemes. The check `!str_starts_with($myUrl, 'http')` evaluates to true for `file://` URIs, causing `file_get_contents($basedir . urldecode($myU…
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Medium 5.1
FOSSBilling: Downloadable product files can be overwritten through filename collisions
FOSSBilling is a free, open-source billing and client management system. Prior to version 0.8.1, downloadable product files are stored using a deterministic filename-derived path. When an administrator uploads a file for a downloadable product, FOSSBilling st…
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High 7.1
pnpm: hoisted install imports lockfile alias outside node_modules
pnpm is a package manager. Prior to 10.34.4 and 11.7.0, a crafted lockfile alias could be joined directly under a hoisted node_modules directory. Traversal aliases could escape that directory, while reserved aliases such as .bin or .pnpm could overwrite pnpm-…
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High 7.1
pnpm: patch-remove could delete project-selected files outside the patches directory
pnpm is a package manager. Prior to 10.34.4 and 11.7.0, a crafted patch entry could resolve outside the configured patches directory and cause pnpm patch-remove to delete an arbitrary reachable file. This vulnerability is fixed in 10.34.4 and 11.7.0.
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High 8.1
Microsoft Edge (Chromium-based) Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
External control of file name or path in Microsoft Edge (Chromium-based) allows an unauthorized attacker to execute code over a network.
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High 8.5
External Control of File Name or Path vulnerability in ASUS Business Manager allows a local user to execute arbitrary c…
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High 8.1
Image Optimizer <= 1.7.4 - Authenticated (Author+) Arbitrary File Deletion via Post Meta Field Injection
The Image Optimizer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion in versions up to and including 1.7.4. This is due to insufficient path validation in the Image_Backup::remove() function where backup file paths stored in post meta are used di…
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Medium 5.3
EasyAdminBundle has path traversal and reflected XSS in Flag and Icon Twig components
EasyAdminBundle ships two public Twig components — `<twig:ea:Flag countryCode="...">` and `<twig:ea:Icon name="...">` — that load SVG files from disk using a path built directly from a public component property, and then render the resulting markup with the T…
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Medium 5.5
ImageMagick: Policy Bypass in concatenate operation due to missing checks
ImageMagick is free and open-source software used for editing and manipulating digital images. In versions prior to 7.1.2-26he, the `-concatenate` operation is missing policy checks, potentially resulting in both reading and writing to paths disallowed by the…
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Medium 5.5
Arbitrary HDF5 File Read via Virtual Dataset Bypass in keras-team/keras
Keras versions up to and including 3.13.2 are vulnerable to an arbitrary HDF5 file read due to an incomplete fix for CVE-2026-1669. The vulnerability resides in the `H5IOStore._verify_dataset()` and `file_editor.py` methods, which fail to check the `dataset.i…
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Critical 9.1
WP-BusinessDirectory <= 4.0.1 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Deletion via Path Traversal via '_filename' Parameter
The WP-BusinessDirectory plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Deletion in versions up to and including 4.0.1. This is due to insufficient path validation in the remove() method of the JBusinessDirectoryControllerUpload class. T…
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Medium 4.7
IBM App Connect Enterprise and IBM Integration Bus for z/OS toolkit is vulnerable to an sql injection
IBM App Connect Enterprise 13.0.1.0 through 13.0.7.2, and 12.0.1.0 through 12.0.12.26 and IBM Integration Bus for z/OS 10.1.0.0 through 10.1.0.7 is vulnerable to SQL injection. A remote attacker could socially engineer a user into accidentally creating files …
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High 7.1
Arbitrary File Read (Unauthenticated)
Arbitrary File Read (Unauthenticated) in NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway if the access to NSIP, Cluster Management IP or SNIP with management access is enabled
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Medium 6.3
Snowflake CLI Arbitrary Local File Read and Exfiltration Through Improper File Path Restriction
Improper restriction of file path resolution in Snowflake CLI versions prior to 3.19 allowed arbitrary local file content to be read and transmitted to Snowflake services. An attacker could exploit this by supplying crafted repository or project content that …
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High 8.1
Frontend File Manager Plugin <= 23.6 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Arbitrary File Deletion
The Frontend File Manager Plugin plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Authenticated Arbitrary File Deletion in versions up to and including 23.6. This is due to a case-sensitive bypass of the wpfm_dir_path parameter sanitization in the wpfm_file_meta_update …
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High 7.1
Docling: Unsafe URI and Path Handling in HTML Backend
Docling simplifies document processing by parsing diverse formats and providing integrations with the generative AI ecosystem. Prior to 2.94.0, the HTML backend has unsafe URI and path handling. This vulnerability is fixed in 2.94.0.
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Critical 10.0CVE-2025-71338 Public exploit
Flowise through 2.2.7 - Arbitrary File Write to Remote Code Execution via document-store API
Flowise through 2.2.7 fails to sanitize path segments in the document-store loader endpoint, allowing unauthenticated attackers to write files outside the storage directory. Attackers can use parent-directory sequences to escape the storage directory and over…
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Critical 9.8CVE-2025-71334 Scanner template
Flowise - Arbitrary File Access via Missing Chat Flow ID Validation
Flowise before 3.0.6 contains an arbitrary file access vulnerability due to missing validation that the chatflowId and chatId parameters are UUIDs or numbers in file handling operations. By supplying a path-traversal value (e.g., '../../../../../tmp') as the …
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Critical 9.3
Flowise - Arbitrary File Upload via Unauthenticated /api/v1/attachments Endpoint
Flowise through 2.2.4 contains an unauthenticated arbitrary file upload vulnerability in the /api/v1/attachments endpoint when storageType is set to local. Attackers can exploit path traversal in the chatId and chatflowId parameters to upload malicious files …
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High 7.5CVE-2025-71324 Scanner template
Flowise - Arbitrary File Read via chatId Parameter
Flowise before 3.0.6 contains an arbitrary file read vulnerability in the chatId parameter of the /api/v1/get-upload-file and /api/v1/openai-assistants-file/download endpoints. The chatId value is not validated and is passed to streamStorageFile(), where a fa…
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High 7.1
pnpm: stage download writes outside destination via manifest version traversal
pnpm is a package manager. From 11.3.0 until 11.5.3, `pnpm stage download` derived a local filename from registry-controlled package name and version fields. A crafted manifest could escape the selected download directory and overwrite another reachable file.…
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Medium 6.5
pnpm: reserved bin name deletes PNPM_HOME during global remove
pnpm is a package manager. Prior to 10.34.2 and 11.5.3, Manifest bin object keys such as "", ".", and ".." passed pnpm's bin-name guard. When a malicious package was installed globally, later global remove, update, or add-replacement flows could re-derive tho…
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High 7.2
Authenticated Arbitrary File Write via Database Import and Xray Log Path Manipulation
3X-UI is a web control panel for managing Xray-core servers. Prior to 3.3.1, an authenticated administrator can abuse the database import functionality to achieve arbitrary file write on the host by modifying Xray configuration values stored in the database. …
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High 8.8
Warp: SSH remote output can lead to local file overwrite and persistence
Warp is an agentic development environment. From 0.2025.03.05.08.02.stable_00 until 0.2026.05.06.15.42.stable_01, Warp accepts non-inline `OSC 1337;File` payloads from terminal output and materialize the decoded payload as a local file without an additional c…
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Medium 6.1
Langflow: Unauthenticated Shareable Playground arbitrary local or S3 file read
Langflow is a tool for building and deploying AI-powered agents and workflows. Prior to 1.10.0, the "Shareable Playground" (or "Public Flows" in code) contains a potential arbitrary file-read vulnerability, depending on the exact flow configuration used. By m…
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Medium 5.5
NTLMv2 hash disclosure via UNC path handling on Windows
launch-editor allows users to open files with line numbers in editor from Node.js. Prior to 2.14.1, the launch-editor NPM package accesses arbitrary paths including Windows UNC paths. When a UNC path is opened, Windows automatically attempts NTLM authenticati…
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Low 3.0
PhpWeasyPrint vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion at shutdown via public $temporaryFiles
PhpWeasyPrint is a PHP library allowing PDF generation from a URL or an HTML page. Prior to version 2.6.0, `AbstractGenerator::$temporaryFiles` is a public array, and `removeTemporaryFiles()` — invoked from `__destruct()` and from a registered shutdown functi…
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High 7.1
In JetBrains GoLand before 2026.1.3 remote code execution was possible via untrusted project configuration
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Medium 6.5
Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor 1.7.1058 - 1.7.1059 - Authenticated (Contributor+) Arbitrary File Read via Data Table Widget CSV File Source
The Royal Addons for Elementor – Addons and Templates Kit for Elementor plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Arbitrary File Read in versions 1.7.1058 through 1.7.1059. This is due to the wpr_get_csv_handle() helper (introduced in version 1.7.1058 as part of …
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Medium 5.9
Armeria: External Control of File Name or Path in xDS SDS DataSource
A vulnerability has been identified in armeria-xds versions 1.38.0 through 1.39.0, where DataSourceStream in the xDS module can resolve control-plane-supplied filenames and environment variables without restriction, allowing a compromised or semi-trusted xDS …
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High 7.2
GeoServer has an arbitrary file write vulnerability in its Master Password Dump Page
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit geospatial data. Prior to versions 2.26.4 and 2.27.3, a vulnerability exists that allows an authenticated administrator with access to GeoServer's security system to pass arbitrary file na…
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Medium 6.5
Arbitrary File Write in postman_download module
The postman_download module uses the workspace name field from the Postman API to construct the local directory path without sanitization. If a malicious workspace has a name containing path traversal characters, pathlib resolves the path outside the intended…
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Medium 5.6
Evolution-data-server: evolution data server: arbitrary file deletion via inconsistent uri handling
A flaw was found in evolution-data-server. Inconsistent comparison logic in the addressbook file backend allows a Flatpak application with D-Bus access to craft a malicious URI containing directory traversal sequences. This URI is stored without proper valida…