CVE-2026-39489

Download Monitor <= 5.1.9 - Authenticated (Author+) Arbitrary File Download

2026-04-20 00:00
daroo

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 5.1.10
Affected Plugin
Download Monitor
Affected Version
<= 5.1.9
CVSS
4.3Medium
Weakness type
CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CVE
CVE-2026-39489
View all Download Monitor vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2026-39489 is a medium-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the Download Monitor WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 5.1.9. It carries a CVSS score of 4.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Author level or above. The issue is fixed in version 5.1.10; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed April 2026, reported by daroo.

Vulnerability Overview

The Download Monitor plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Directory Traversal in all versions up to, and including, 5.1.9. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Author-level access and above, to read the contents of arbitrary files on the server, which can contain sensitive information.

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.

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

Reaching this weakness in Download Monitor <= 5.1.9 takes an account at Author 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 Download Monitor the fix is 5.1.10: builds <= 5.1.9 are affected, anything from 5.1.10 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 5.1.10, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

An attacker needs Author 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: Download Monitor 5.1.10 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Firewall
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-39489https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/ba111255-3b91-4ef6-8d57-10ff08363c48https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-39489

Related records

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