# CVE-2016-5941: Path traversal in Kenexa LMS on Cloud

> Remote attackers can traverse directories via crafted URLs to view arbitrary files on IBM Kenexa LMS on Cloud.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.7 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 1 Feb 2017
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-fc6j-2mm3-rrgr

## What is CVE-2016-5941?

CVE-2016-5941 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in IBM Corporation Kenexa LMS on Cloud, published on 1 Feb 2017. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

IBM Kenexa LMS on Cloud could allow a remote attacker to traverse directories on the system. An attacker could send a specially-crafted URL request containing dot dot sequences (/../) to view arbitrary files on the system.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2016-5941?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Ibm Kenexa Lms.

## How do I fix CVE-2016-5941?

No fix has been published for CVE-2016-5941 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2016-5941 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2016-5941 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in IBM Corporation Kenexa LMS on Cloud

- [CVE-2016-8931](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-8931/): File upload in Kenexa LMS on Cloud (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2016-8932](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-8932/): File upload in Kenexa LMS on Cloud (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2016-8928](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-8928/): SQL injection in Kenexa LMS on Cloud (high 7.6)
- [CVE-2016-8930](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-8930/): SQL injection in Kenexa LMS on Cloud (high 7.6)
- [CVE-2016-8933](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-8933/): Path traversal in Kenexa LMS on Cloud (medium 6.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2016-5941 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2016-5941 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in IBM Corporation Kenexa LMS on Cloud, published on 1 Feb 2017. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2016-5941 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: IBM Corporation Kenexa LMS on Cloud. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-5941/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-5941/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2016-5941
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2016-5941
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2016-5941

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-5941/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.
