CVE-2026-38993
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 · uneditedCockpit 2.13.5 and earlier is vulnerable to directory traversal via the Buckets component. This vulnerability allows authenticated attackers to write files to arbitrary locations within the uploads directory or overwrite assets with malicious versions.
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 · moderate confidenceCockpit CMS versions 2.13.5 and earlier contain a directory traversal vulnerability in the Buckets file management component. An authenticated attacker can manipulate file paths to write files outside the intended uploads directory or overwrite existing assets with malicious content. This occurs due to insufficient path validation when processing file upload or write operations through the Buckets API.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/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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Determine Cockpit CMS versionLocate the version file (composer.json or version.php typically in the root directory) and read the 'version' or 'cockpit' entry. Alternatively, access the admin dashboard and check the About or Settings section for the installed version number.Affected if The installed version is 2.13.5 or any earlier version (e.g., 2.13.0, 2.12.x, 2.11.x, etc.).
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Verify Buckets module is activeCheck the /addons directory for the Buckets folder, or inspect the config.yaml / config.php file for 'buckets' in the available modules section. In the admin interface, navigate to the File Manager or Buckets section to confirm the component is accessible.Affected if The Buckets file management component is installed and accessible to authenticated users.
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Confirm authenticated access existsReview user accounts and roles in the admin panel under Users or ACL settings. Determine if any user accounts (including admin or editor roles) have access to the Buckets API endpoints for file upload or file write operations.Affected if Any authenticated user account exists with permissions to use the Buckets file upload or write functionality.
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Inspect file operation logsCheck server access logs and application logs for requests to /api/buckets/files or /api/buckets/upload endpoints. Look for patterns involving ../ sequences in file path parameters, such as ../../ or ..\/ in query strings or POST data.Affected if Historical requests contain ../ path traversal sequences targeting the Buckets API, indicating potential exploitation attempts.
You are affected if Cockpit CMS version is 2.13.5 or earlier AND the Buckets component is enabled for any authenticated user, as the directory traversal flaw allows arbitrary file writes outside the uploads directory.
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 dataUpgrade Cockpit CMS to a version newer than 2.13.5 and implement strict path sanitization on all file operations within the Buckets component to prevent path traversal sequences (../) from being processed.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-38993 — 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-2026-38993 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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- 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
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