# CVE-2016-6896: Path traversal in n/a

> Authenticated attackers can exploit a directory traversal flaw in WordPress to read arbitrary text files or cause denial of service.

- **Severity:** High 7.1 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 18 Jan 2017
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2016-6896, GHSA-7r4r-qf37-vqqq, UBUNTU-CVE-2016-6896

## What is CVE-2016-6896?

CVE-2016-6896 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Wordpress Wordpress, published on 18 Jan 2017. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Directory traversal vulnerability in the wp_ajax_update_plugin function in wp-admin/includes/ajax-actions.php in WordPress 4.5.3 allows remote authenticated users to cause a denial of service or read certain text files via a .. (dot dot) in the plugin parameter to wp-admin/admin-ajax.php, as demonstrated by /dev/random read operations that deplete the entropy pool.

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

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2016-6896?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Wordpress Wordpress.

## How do I fix CVE-2016-6896?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2016-6896 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2016-6896 exists.

Public exploit code:

- WordPress Core 4.5.3 - Directory Traversal / Denial of Service (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in Wordpress Wordpress

- [CVE-2026-63030](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-63030/): WordPress Core Interpretation Conflict (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-87902](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-87902/): WordPress Core Remote File Inclusion (high 8.1, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-60137](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-60137/): WordPress Core SQL Injection (medium 5.9, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2012-2399](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-2399/): Cross-site scripting in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2012-2400](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-2400/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2016-6896 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2016-6896 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Wordpress Wordpress, published on 18 Jan 2017. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2016-6896 exists.

Affected product: Wordpress Wordpress. 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-2016-6896/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-6896/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2016-6896
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2016-6896
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2016-6896

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-6896/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.