What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-16955?

CVE-2026-16955 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.0 (Medium). CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:N/A:N. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.2%.

Is there a public PoC exploit available for CVE-2026-16955?

Yes, a public proof-of-concept exploit is available for CVE-2026-16955. Prioritise patching immediately. EPSS: 0.2%.

Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-16955?

Yes, a patch is available for CVE-2026-16955. Update the affected software to the latest version immediately.

AI Engine CVE-2026-16955

EUVD-2026-54745 MEDIUM

Path Traversal (CWE-22)

2026-08-08 WPScan

GHSA-hgr8-39c9-344p

Path Traversal WordPress Ai Engine

5.0

CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: WPScan

Severity by source

Vendor (WPScan) PRIMARY

5.0 MEDIUM

AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:N/A:N

vuln.today AI

7.7 HIGH

C:H reflects that arbitrary file read exposes wp-config.php secrets; S:C retained due to off-host exfiltration; PR:L scores worst-case subscriber path.

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

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

Primary rating from Vendor (WPScan).

CVSS VectorVendor: WPScan

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

Attack Vector

Network

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

Low

User Interaction

None

Scope

Changed

Confidentiality

Low

Integrity

None

Availability

None

Lifecycle Timeline

Analysis Generated

Aug 11, 2026 - 23:21 vuln.today

CVSS changed

Aug 11, 2026 - 20:22 NVD

5.0 (MEDIUM)

Patch available

Aug 08, 2026 - 07:01 EUVD

CVE Published

Aug 08, 2026 - 06:00 cve.org

UNKNOWN (no severity yet)

CVE Published

Aug 08, 2026 - 06:00 cve.org

MEDIUM 5.0

DescriptionCVE.org

The AI Engine WordPress plugin before 3.6.6 does not confine a caller-supplied file path before reading it and forwarding the contents to an external service, allowing users with a subscriber-level account to read arbitrary files from the server and exfiltrate them off-host. Reaching the issue at subscriber level requires a non-default public API feature to be enabled; otherwise the same issue is reachable by an administrator, which on multisite allows a non-super subsite administrator to read the network-shared configuration and its secrets.

AnalysisAI

Path traversal in the AI Engine WordPress plugin before 3.6.6 allows server-side file contents to be read and exfiltrated to an external AI service without path sanitization. When the plugin's public API feature is enabled (a non-default setting), subscriber-level users can trigger this; otherwise the same flaw is accessible to WordPress administrators - and on multisite installations, a non-super subsite administrator can exploit it to read network-wide configuration files and extract embedded secrets such as database credentials and API keys. …

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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata

Access

Obtain subscriber credentials or register account

Delivery

Confirm public API feature is enabled

Exploit

Craft API request with path traversal payload

Execution

Plugin reads arbitrary server file without validation

Persist

File contents forwarded to external AI service

Impact

Attacker retrieves exfiltrated file from external service

Access

Obtain subscriber credentials or register account

Delivery

Confirm public API feature is enabled

Exploit

Craft API request with path traversal payload

Execution

Plugin reads arbitrary server file without validation

Persist

File contents forwarded to external AI service

Impact

Attacker retrieves exfiltrated file from external service

Vulnerability AssessmentAI

Exploitation	Subscriber-level exploitation (CVSS PR:L path) requires the AI Engine plugin's public API feature to be explicitly enabled, which is a non-default configuration - without it, this attack path is unavailable to subscriber accounts. … Additional conditions and limiting factors are described in the full assessment.
Risk Assessment	The official CVSS 3.1 score of 5.0 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:N/A:N) is arguably conservative on confidentiality: the C:L rating understates the practical impact of arbitrary file read, which can expose wp-config.php and its embedded database credentials, secret salts, and API keys - data of high sensitivity. … Full risk analysis with EPSS, KEV, and SSVC signal comparison available after sign-in.
Exploit Scenario	An attacker registers or compromises a subscriber-level account on a WordPress site running AI Engine with the public API feature enabled, then sends a crafted API request supplying a path traversal string targeting wp-config.php (e.g., '../../wp-config.php'). The plugin reads the file without validation and forwards its contents - including database host, credentials, and secret keys - to an external AI service endpoint, from which the attacker retrieves the exfiltrated data. …
Remediation	Update the AI Engine WordPress plugin to version 3.6.6 or later, which contains the vendor-released patch as confirmed by WPScan (https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/1b413d84-61c7-4e19-a693-312d74f618ff/) and EUVD-2026-54745. … Detailed patch versions, workarounds, and compensating controls in full report.