CVE-2026-16955

AI Engine <= 3.6.5 - Authenticated (Subscriber+) Arbitrary File Read

2026-08-03 00:00
Revanth Hari Narayana Matte

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 3.6.6
Affected Plugin
AI Engine – The Chatbot, AI Framework & MCP for WordPress
Affected Version
<= 3.6.5
CVSS
6.5Medium
Weakness type
CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CVE
CVE-2026-16955
View all AI Engine – The Chatbot, AI Framework & MCP for WordPress vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2026-16955 is a medium-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the AI Engine WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 3.6.5. It carries a CVSS score of 6.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality impact). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Subscriber level or above. The issue is fixed in version 3.6.6; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed August 2026, reported by Revanth Hari Narayana Matte.

Vulnerability Overview

The AI Engine plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Arbitrary File Read in versions up to, and including, 3.6.5. This is due to insufficient validation of a user supplied path. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level access and above, to read arbitrary files on the server, including sensitive configuration files.

Technical Analysis

The vector marks this flaw as remotely reachable over the network, with low attack complexity — no special timing or configuration is needed, and no interaction from a victim user. A successful exploit has high impact on confidentiality.

CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')

Reaching this weakness in AI Engine <= 3.6.5 takes an account at Subscriber level or above. Path traversal happens when user-controlled text is used to build a filesystem path without being constrained to an intended directory, so sequences like ../ walk the resolved path somewhere else.

Depending on the operation, it means reading files outside the intended folder — wp-config.php being the usual target — or writing to and deleting paths the web server can touch. For AI Engine the fix is 3.6.6: builds <= 3.6.5 are affected, anything from 3.6.6 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 3.6.6, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

An attacker needs Subscriber access first, so the firewall sees the attempt as traffic from a logged-in account: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. None of that substitutes for the fix: AI Engine 3.6.6 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Firewall
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-16955https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/fefebdbd-e917-40f0-8631-966017b3ee4ahttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-16955

Related records

Vulnerability data © Defiant, Inc., provided under the Wordfence Intelligence T&C