TapApplication · Jenkins
CVE-2016-4986
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedDirectory traversal vulnerability in the TAP plugin before 1.25 in Jenkins allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files via an unspecified parameter.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceA directory traversal vulnerability in the Jenkins TAP (Test Anything Protocol) plugin versions prior to 1.25 allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files on the Jenkins master by manipulating file paths in an unspecified parameter. The vulnerability is exploitable without authentication due to insufficient path validation, allowing traversal sequences like '../' to access files outside the intended directory.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
TapApplication
< 1.25CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify if TAP plugin is installedLog into Jenkins web UI, go to Manage Jenkins > Manage Plugins > Installed tab and look for 'TAP' plugin in the list, or check the JENKINS_HOME/plugins directory for a tap folder.Affected if TAP plugin is not found in the installed plugins list.
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Check installed TAP plugin versionIn Jenkins web UI, go to Manage Jenkins > Manage Plugins > Installed tab, find the TAP plugin and note the version number displayed.Affected if The version shown is less than 1.25 (for example, 1.24, 1.23, etc.).
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Verify TAP plugin file version via filesystemIf filesystem access is available, navigate to JENKINS_HOME/plugins/tap directory and locate the manifest or plugin metadata file (MANIFEST.MF or plugin-specific version file) to read the installed version.Affected if The version in the manifest is less than 1.25.
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Check if TAP integration is configured in job definitionsReview Jenkins job configurations (config.xml files in JENKINS_HOME/jobs/ or via UI) for any jobs using the TAP plugin publisher or recorder.Affected if Jobs explicitly configure TAP publishers and the plugin version is vulnerable.
A user is affected if the TAP plugin is installed and its version is below 1.25, as this version range contains the directory traversal vulnerability.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor data1.25
Upgrade the TAP plugin to version 1.25 or later through the Jenkins plugin manager. If immediate upgrade is not possible, consider disabling the TAP plugin or restricting access to Jenkins via network-level controls until the patch can be applied.
Fix this in Tap
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,464.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-4986 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-4986 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data