Custom Fields Plugin up to 1.5.0 on WordPress wp-config.php path traversal

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability categorized as critical has been discovered in Custom Fields Plugin up to 1.5.0. The impacted element is an unknown function of the file wp-config.php. Such manipulation leads to path traversal. This vulnerability is referenced as CVE-2026-16940. It is possible to launch the attack remotely. No exploit is available.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as critical, has been found in Custom Fields Plugin up to 1.5.0. Affected by this issue is an unknown functionality of the file wp-config.php. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a path traversal vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-22. The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. Impacted is confidentiality, integrity, and availability. CVE summarizes:

The Custom Fields WordPress plugin before 1.5.1 does not validate a user-supplied file path before deletion, allowing unauthenticated users to delete arbitrary files on the server (such as wp-config.php), which can lead to a full site takeover.

The advisory is available at wpscan.com. This vulnerability is handled as CVE-2026-16940 since 07/24/2026. The exploitation is known to be easy. The attack may be launched remotely. No form of authentication is required for exploitation. Technical details are known, but there is no available exploit. This vulnerability is assigned to T1006 by the MITRE ATT&CK project.

By approaching the search of inurl:wp-config.php it is possible to find vulnerable targets with Google Hacking.

Upgrading to version 1.5.1 eliminates this vulnerability.

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Productinfo

Type

• WordPress Plugin

Name

• Custom Fields Plugin

Version

• 1.0
• 1.1
• 1.2
• 1.3
• 1.4
• 1.5.0

CPE 2.3info

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CPE 2.2info

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