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CVE-2026-21857 — Redaxo has Path Traversal in redaxo/source — CVE...

HIGH

Redaxo has Path Traversal in Backup Addon Leading to Arbitrary File Read

Published January 5, 2026Updated February 3, 2026Source: osv

Summary

### Summary Authenticated users with backup permissions can read arbitrary files within the webroot via path traversal in the Backup addon's file export functionality. <img width="664" height="899" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/fd1ca69e-b275-4daf-9a62-621cde6525f5" /> <img width="2358" height="445" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/fad81152-9e1b-413e-9823-09540a23e2fb" /> ### Details The Backup addon does not validate the `EXPDIR` POST parameter against the UI-generated allowlist of permitted directories. An attacker can supply relative paths containing `../` sequences (or even absolute paths inside the document root) to include any readable file in the generated `.tar.gz` archive. Vulnerable code: - `redaxo/src/addons/backup/pages/export.php` (lines 72-76) – directly uses `$_POST['EXPDIR']` - `redaxo/src/addons/backup/lib/backup.php` (lines ~413 & ~427) – concatenates unsanitized user input with base path This allows disclosure of sensitive files such as: - `redaxo/data/core/config.yml` → database credentials + password hashes of all backend users - `.env`, custom configuration files, logs, uploaded malicious files, etc. ### Affected versions ≤ 5.20.1 (confirmed working) ### Patched versions None (as of 2025-12-09) ### PoC – Extracting database credentials and password hashes 1. Log in as any user with Backup permission 2. Go to Backup → Export → Files <img width="1240" height="960" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/bc05ba18-9664-4be2-b637-4fec3a0f409a" /> 3. Intercept the request with Burp Suite <img width="2184" height="478" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/9fa754a1-2cd0-4d3d-a5cc-cfa34c8a1718" /> 4. Change one `EXPDIR[]` value to `../../../../var/www/html/redaxo/data/core` <img width="978" height="591" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/d15f5c7f-b72c-44cc-9be2-da8d3f26f124" /> 5. Send request → download archive <img width="423" height="131" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/db8a8bda-cdaf-4dea-812f-1e312da908e2" /> 6. Extract and open `data/core/config.yml` <img width="859" height="281" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/c8112ce1-5a1d-435f-953b-7eb4e711e042" /> Result: plaintext database password <img width="2534" height="1198" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/218ae917-868a-437e-98b0-6471b82c0b10" /> ### Impact Full compromise of the REDAXO installation: - Database takeover - Password hash extraction → offline cracking → admin access - When combined with other vulnerabilities → RCE CVSS 4.0 vector & score below. ### Credits Discovered by: Łukasz Rybak

Advisory Timeline

  • First published January 5, 2026 (280 days ago).
  • Last revised February 3, 2026 — 28 days after initial publication.

Remediation

Upgrade to the fixed version using your package manager.

Composer
Update redaxo/source to 5.20.2 or later
composer require "redaxo/source:^5.20.2"

After upgrading, run your dependency scanner again to confirm the vulnerability is resolved.

Affected Packages (1)

Affects 1 ecosystem: packagist (1).

PackageEcosystemAffectedFixed In
redaxo/source
packagist
5.10.0, 5.10.0-beta1, 5.10.0-beta2, 5.10.1 (+36 more)5.20.2

Vulnerability Classification

Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) identifiers for this vulnerability type.

CVSS Score Breakdown

What the CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) 8.7 score means for each attack dimension.

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

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:H/SI:H/SA:N

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-21857?
Redaxo has Path Traversal in Backup Addon Leading to Arbitrary File Read This vulnerability has been assigned a severity rating of HIGH (CVSS score: 8.7/10).
How do I check if my project is affected by CVE-2026-21857?
CVE-2026-21857 affects redaxo/source. Use GeekWala's free vulnerability scanner to check your dependencies against CVE-2026-21857 and 200,000+ other known vulnerabilities.

Severity & Exploitability

CVSS Score
8.7

High exploitability or significant impact. Prioritize remediation within days.

Also Known As

GHSA-824x-88xg-cwrv

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