CVE-2026-9690
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 · uneditedUnauthenticated Arbitrary File Download in WP Media folder Addon <= 4.0.1 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 · high confidenceThe WP Media folder Addon plugin for WordPress versions 4.0.1 and below contains an unauthenticated arbitrary file download vulnerability. Attackers can exploit this to download sensitive server files without any authentication, likely through path traversal in a download function.
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
- 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.
-
Verify WP Media folder Addon is installedNavigate to WordPress admin dashboard > Plugins > Installed Plugins and look for 'WP Media folder Addon' or check the plugin files in /wp-content/plugins/ directory for the media-folder-addon folderAffected if The plugin is present on the WordPress installation
-
Check the installed plugin versionIn WordPress admin > Plugins > Installed Plugins > WP Media folder Addon, view the plugin details to find the version number. Alternatively, check the main plugin file (usually media-folder-addon.php) for the 'Version' header in the plugin commentsAffected if The version number is 4.0.1 or lower
-
Identify if the download functionality is exposedCheck for downloadable endpoints in the plugin. Common patterns include files with 'download', 'file', or 'getfile' in the filename within the /wp-content/plugins/media-folder-addon/ directory. Look for PHP files containing functions that handle file downloads without authentication checksAffected if The plugin contains a file download function accessible without authentication
-
Check access logs for suspicious download requestsReview web server access logs (Apache, Nginx) for requests to the WP Media folder Addon directory that include path traversal patterns such as '../' or absolute file paths in query parameters. Look for access to files like wp-config.php, .htaccess, or other sensitive server filesAffected if Logs show unauthorized download attempts using path traversal toward sensitive files
-
Verify the download endpoint lacks authenticationIf the download function is identified, examine its source code to confirm it does not implement current_user_can(), is_user_logged_in(), or similar authentication checks before processing file downloadsAffected if The download function contains no authentication or authorization checks before serving files
A WordPress installation is affected if WP Media folder Addon plugin version 4.0.1 or lower is installed and contains an unauthenticated file download function accessible without login.
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 dataUpdate the WP Media folder Addon plugin to a version newer than 4.0.1 immediately. If no patched version is available, disable the plugin until a fix is released.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,376.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-9690 — 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-2026-9690 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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