CVE-2026-15601

Kirki <= 6.0.13 - Authenticated (Editor+) Path Traversal to Arbitrary File Write (Zip Slip)

2026-07-31 19:48
cuokon

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 6.1.0
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-2026-15601
View all Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2026-15601 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 6.1.0; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed July 2026, reported by cuokon.

Vulnerability Overview

The Kirki – Freeform Page Builder, Website Builder & Customizer plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Path Traversal (Zip Slip) in all versions up to, and including, 6.0.13 via the extract_zip_file function. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with custom-level access and above, to write arbitrary files on the server, which can allow for remote code execution. The install_app, update_app, and get_kirki_template_from_zip code paths accept a user-supplied app src value to construct the download URL, and no sanitization is applied to prevent a crafted ZIP from being fetched and extracted with path-traversing entry names that escape the intended destination directory.

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 Kirki <= 6.0.13 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 6.1.0: builds <= 6.0.13 are affected, anything from 6.1.0 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 6.1.0, 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 6.1.0 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Firewall
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-15601https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/4ccd1314-b9b9-4f63-820c-2817a4932ee8https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-15601

Related records

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