CVE-2026-15457

Kirki <= 6.0.13 - Authenticated (Editor+) Path Traversal to Arbitrary Directory Deletion via 'family' Parameter

2026-07-16 14:41
Wordfence PRISM

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 6.0.14
Affected Plugin
Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer
Affected Version
<= 6.0.13
CVSS
4.9Medium
Weakness type
CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CVE
CVE-2026-15457
View all Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2026-15457 is a medium-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the Kirki WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 6.0.13. It carries a CVSS score of 4.9 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality impact). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Editor level or above. The issue is fixed in version 6.0.14; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed July 2026, reported by Wordfence PRISM.

Vulnerability Overview

The Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Directory Traversal in all versions up to, and including, 6.0.13 via the 'family' parameter. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with editor-level access and above, to delete arbitrary directories on the server, which can result in loss of data and availability. CVE-2026-65436 is likely a duplicate of this.

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')

Kirki <= 6.0.13 carries this weakness at family, and reaching it takes an account at Editor 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 Kirki the fix is 6.0.14: builds <= 6.0.13 are affected, anything from 6.0.14 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 6.0.14, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

An attacker needs Editor 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: Kirki 6.0.14 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Firewall
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-15457https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/01a52285-2d0c-4b29-8dab-18a3e3640e5chttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-15457

Related records

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