CVE-2026-14490: Path Traversal (CVSS 7.5)

Description

The Demi – One Click Demo Import, WP Backup & Site Migration plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Arbitrary Directory Deletion in all versions up to, and including, 0.0.7. The vulnerability exists because the plugin stores its HMAC signing key and per-step restore token as dotfiles inside a publicly accessible subdirectory of the WordPress uploads folder — without any `.htaccess` or index file protection — and the `demi_restore_step` AJAX handler, registered for unauthenticated callers, explicitly accepts possession of the on-disk signing key as a standalone alternative to WordPress capability and nonce checks; an unauthenticated attacker who retrieves the exposed key can forge a valid signed state envelope to invoke `CleanDir::execute()` with a caller-supplied absolute path that is subject to no allow-list or path-canonicalization check. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to recursively delete arbitrary directories on the server.

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CVSS v3.1 Score

7.5

HIGH

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

EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0051

Probability of exploitation

0.41%

Percentile rank

EPSS estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A higher score means more likely to be exploited.

Weakness Type (CWE)

CWE-22 Path Traversal

References

Other References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-14490? +

The Demi – One Click Demo Import, WP Backup & Site Migration plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Arbitrary Directory Deletion in all versions up to, and including, 0.0.7. The vulnerability exists because the plugin stores its HMAC signing key and per-step restore token as dotfiles inside a publicly accessible subdirectory of the WordPress uploads folder — without any `.htaccess` or index file protection — and the `demi_restore_step` AJAX handler, registered for unauthenticated callers, explicitly accepts possession of the on-disk signing key as a standalone alternative to WordPress capability and nonce checks; an unauthenticated attacker who retrieves the exposed key can forge a valid signed state envelope to invoke `CleanDir::execute()` with a caller-supplied absolute path that is subject to no allow-list or path-canonicalization check. This makes it possible for unauthenticated attackers to recursively delete arbitrary directories on the server. It has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH).

How severe is CVE-2026-14490? +

CVE-2026-14490 has a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.5 out of 10, rated HIGH. This is a high-severity vulnerability that should be prioritized for patching. The EPSS score is 0.0051, placing it in the 0th percentile for exploitation probability.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-14490? +

You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.

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