CVE-2026-35487
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 · uneditedtext-generation-webui is an open-source web interface for running Large Language Models. Prior to 4.3, an unauthenticated path traversal vulnerability in load_prompt() allows reading any .txt file on the server filesystem. The file content is returned verbatim in the API response. This vulnerability is fixed in 4.3.
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 confidenceAn unauthenticated path traversal vulnerability in the load_prompt() function of text-generation-webui versions prior to 4.3 allows attackers to read arbitrary .txt files on the server filesystem by manipulating file paths in the API request. The file content is returned verbatim in the API response.
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< 4.3CVSS 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
- Low
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/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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Locate text-generation-webui installationFind the installation directory. Common locations include the current working directory, /home/*/text-generation-webui, or custom install paths. Look for the repository root containing main.py, server.py, or similar files.Affected if The software is not found or this is not the text-generation-webui repository
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Determine installed versionCheck the version file or git tag. Run: cat versions.txt 2>/dev/null || git describe --tags 2>/dev/null || grep -i version requirements.txt 2>/dev/null. Alternatively, check the source code for version metadata.Affected if Version is not 4.3 or later (e.g., no version file, older tag, or version number below 4.3)
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Verify API server is runningCheck if the web UI API is active. Look for running processes: ps aux | grep -E 'python.*server|python.*main' or check if port 5000 (default) is listening: netstat -tlnp | grep 5000 or ss -tlnp | grep 5000Affected if API server is running and exposed on a network interface (not localhost-only)
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Test load_prompt endpoint accessibilityIf the API is running, send a crafted request to the load_prompt endpoint. The exact path depends on the API structure, but typically it would be something like: curl -X POST http://localhost:5000/v1/prompts/load -d '{"file": "../../../../etc/passwd"}'. Check if the response returns content from arbitrary files.Affected if The endpoint accepts path traversal sequences and returns file contents from outside the intended prompts directory
You are affected if text-generation-webui is installed with a version prior to 4.3 AND the API server is running and accessible, allowing an attacker to exploit the load_prompt() function to read arbitrary .txt files via path traversal.
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.
dbcve · scoped4.3
Upgrade to version 4.3 or later, which contains the patch for this vulnerability. If upgrading is not immediately possible, implement input validation in load_prompt() to restrict file paths to allowed directories and prevent directory traversal sequences.
4.3
- 1. Back up your current text-generation-webui installation and any custom configurations.
- 2. Navigate to your text-generation-webui installation directory.
- 3. Pull the latest changes from the repository or download version 4.3.
- 4. If using git, run: git pull origin main or git checkout tags/v4.3
- 5. Restart the text-generation-webui service to apply the update.
- 6. Verify the application is running on version 4.3 and test that load_prompt() functions correctly.
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-35487 — 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-2026-35487 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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