AR for WooCommerce <= 8.40 - Unauthenticated Path Traversal to Arbitrary File Read via 'file' Parameter
Strategic Overview
- Status
- Patched in 8.41
- Affected Plugin
- AR for WooCommerce
- Affected Version
<= 8.40- CVSS
- 7.5High
- Weakness type
- CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
- CVE
CVE-2026-14352
At a glance
CVE-2026-14352 is a high-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the AR for WooCommerce WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 8.40. It carries a CVSS score of 7.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality impact). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 8.41; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed July 2026, reported by CHOIGYEONGMIN.
Vulnerability Overview
The AR for WooCommerce plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Directory Traversal in all versions up to, and including, 8.40 via the 'file' parameter parameter. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to read the contents of arbitrary files on the server, which can contain sensitive information. The three intended access controls all fail: valid nonces are freely minted by unauthenticated callers via the nopriv ar_get_fresh_nonce and ar_process_user_image AJAX handlers; the AES-256-CBC encryption key is derived from get_option('ar_licence_key'), which returns false on default free installations and yields a predictable key attackers can use to encrypt their own path payloads; and the Referer check is trivially bypassed because the Referer header is attacker-controlled.
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 privileges on the target site, 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')
AR for WooCommerce <= 8.40 carries this weakness at file, and reaching it takes no account at all. 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 AR for WooCommerce the fix is 8.41: builds <= 8.40 are affected, anything from 8.41 onward is not.
Remediation
Update to version 8.41, or a newer patched version
How does WordSec protect against this?
Requests carrying this pattern arrive without a session, so nothing upstream of the firewall gets a chance to reject them: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. None of that substitutes for the fix: AR for WooCommerce 8.41 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.
- Firewall
- Login Security
- Alerts
External References
Related records
Other vulnerabilities in AR for WooCommerce
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