VulnerabilityPublished 20 Mar 2026Updated 8 Apr 2026

CVE-2026-3474: EmailKit (WordPress plugin) · Path Traversal

Affects EmailKit (WordPress plugin)Source CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.9 Medium.

Data as of 1 Nov 2026, 11:02 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

4.9Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 35% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: High: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide significant (e.g., administrative) control over the vulnerable component that could affect component-wide settings and files.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 20 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 1 Nov 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
roxnorEmailKit – Email Customizer for WooCommerce & WP	Affected <=1.6.3	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

Until an official fix is available, restrict Administrator access to trusted users only and monitor for unusual activity involving the 'emailkit-editor-template' REST API endpoint. Consider disabling or restricting the plugin if possible. Since the vulnerability requires Administrator privileges, limiting administrative accounts reduces risk.

Description

The EmailKit – Email Customizer for WooCommerce & WP plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file read via path traversal in all versions up to, and including, 1.6.3. This is due to the action() function in the TemplateData class passing user-supplied input from the 'emailkit-editor-template' REST API parameter directly to file_get_contents() without any path validation, sanitization, or restriction to an allowed directory. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Administrator-level access, to read arbitrary files on the server (such as /etc/passwd or wp-config.php) by supplying a traversal path. The file contents are stored as post meta and can subsequently be retrieved via the fetch-data REST API endpoint. Notably, the CheckForm class in the same plugin implements proper path validation using realpath() and directory restriction, demonstrating that the developer was aware of the risk but failed to apply the same protections to the TemplateData endpoint.

Impact

An authenticated attacker with Administrator-level access can exploit this vulnerability to read arbitrary files on the server hosting the WordPress site. This may include sensitive files such as /etc/passwd or wp-config.php, potentially exposing credentials or configuration details. The vulnerability does not allow code execution or denial of service but compromises confidentiality of server files. The impact is limited by the requirement for Administrator privileges and the absence of known exploits in the wild.

Summary

CVE-2026-3474 is a path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22) in the EmailKit – Email Customizer for WooCommerce & WP plugin for WordPress, affecting all versions up to 1.6.3. The issue exists in the TemplateData class's action() function, which takes user input from the 'emailkit-editor-template' REST API parameter and passes it directly to file_get_contents() without validating or restricting the file path. This allows authenticated users with Administrator privileges to read arbitrary files on the server by supplying traversal sequences. The file contents are stored as post meta and can be retrieved via another REST API endpoint. The presence of proper path validation in another class (CheckForm) indicates developer awareness but inconsistent application of security controls. The vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 4.9 (medium severity).

CWE-22Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory (Path Traversal) (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #6OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
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.
Implementation · Input Validation
Assume all input is malicious. Use an "accept known good" input validation strategy, i.e., use a list of acceptable inputs that strictly conform to specifications. Reject any input that does not strictly conform to specifications, or transform it into something that does.
Architecture and Design
For any security checks that are performed on the client side, ensure that these checks are duplicated on the server side, in order to avoid CWE-602. Attackers can bypass the client-side checks by modifying values after the checks have been performed, or by changing the client to remove the client-side checks…
Implementation · Input Validation
Inputs should be decoded and canonicalized to the application's current internal representation before being validated (CWE-180). Make sure that the application does not decode the same input twice (CWE-174).
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V12.3.1 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Path Traversal (opens in a new tab)
Using Slashes and URL Encoding Combined to Bypass Validation Logic (opens in a new tab)
Manipulating Web Input to File System Calls (opens in a new tab)
Using Escaped Slashes in Alternate Encoding (opens in a new tab)
Using Slashes in Alternate Encoding (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 9 Apr 2026, 11:34 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-22

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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