# CVE-2021-40887: Path traversal in n/a

> An attacker can exploit a directory traversal flaw in ProjectSend to move arbitrary files to the upload directory, potentially exposing or modifying system files.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 11 Oct 2021
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-x5xx-j968-8f6j

## What is CVE-2021-40887?

CVE-2021-40887 is a critical path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 11 Oct 2021. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Projectsend version r1295 is affected by a directory traversal vulnerability. Because of lacking sanitization input for files[] parameter, an attacker can add ../ to move all PHP files or any file on the system that has permissions to /upload/files/ folder.

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

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-40887?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Projectsend Projectsend.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-40887?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-40887 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-40887 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-40887 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2024-11680](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-11680/): ProjectSend Improper Authentication (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2016-10731](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-10731/): SQL injection in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2016-10732](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-10732/): Auth bypass in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2016-10733](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-10733/): Path traversal in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2016-10734](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-10734/): Missing authorization in n/a (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-40887 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-40887 is a critical path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 11 Oct 2021. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-40887 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. 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-2021-40887/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40887/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-40887
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-40887
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-40887

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40887/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.