CVE-2026-107321

W3 Total Cache <= 2.10.5 - Authenticated (Author+) Path Traversal

2026-10-08 00:00
Karthik Ramakrishnan

Strategic Overview

Status
Patched in 2.10.6
Affected Plugin
W3 Total Cache
Affected Version
<= 2.10.5
CVSS
6.5Medium
Weakness type
CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CVE
CVE-2026-107321
View all W3 Total Cache vulnerabilities

At a glance

CVE-2026-107321 is a medium-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the W3 Total Cache WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 2.10.5. It carries a CVSS score of 6.5 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity; high confidentiality impact). Exploitation requires an authenticated account at Author level or above. The issue is fixed in version 2.10.6; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed October 2026, reported by Karthik Ramakrishnan.

Vulnerability Overview

The W3 Total Cache plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Path Traversal in all versions up to, and including, 2.10.5. This is due to insufficient validation of a user supplied path. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with author-level access and above, to access files and directories outside of the intended 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 W3 Total Cache <= 2.10.5 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 W3 Total Cache the fix is 2.10.6: builds <= 2.10.5 are affected, anything from 2.10.6 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 2.10.6, 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: W3 Total Cache 2.10.6 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

  • Firewall
  • Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-107321https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/6d92cc7e-2946-45de-b245-2a12c9b567fdhttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-107321

Related records

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