Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessAuthenticate as WordPress admin
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DeliveryUpload crafted migration ZIP
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ExploitTraversal in entry name escapes extraction dir
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ExecutionWrite PHP file to web root
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PersistRequest file to run code
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ImpactRemote code execution on server
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V5 - File Handling Path canonicalization, traversal prevention
MITRE ATT&CK
2 techniques across 2 tactics: Discovery, Collection The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | Requires an authenticated WordPress administrator account (CVSS PR:H) and use of the Prime Mover plugin's migration ZIP import feature: the attacker must be able to supply a migration package whose ZIP entry names include directory-traversal sequences processed by computeExtractionParameters() and resumableZipExtractor(). Exploitation is limited to deployments running Prime Mover before 2.2.1, and achieving full remote code execution additionally depends on writing to a filesystem location that the web server will interpret (e.g., a PHP-executable path), which is not guaranteed in all hosting configurations. The admin-privilege prerequisite is the primary limiting factor; no end-user interaction is required (UI:N). |
| Impact | This is a genuine but access-gated risk. The CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N) shows a network-reachable, low-complexity attack with no user interaction, but PR:H means the attacker must already hold WordPress administrator privileges - a significant barrier that sharply limits the realistic threat population to insiders, compromised admin accounts, or chained privilege escalation. The 8.6 score (driven by VC:H/VI:H/VA:H via potential RCE) overstates standalone urgency because the high-privilege precondition is doing a lot of work; this is better characterized as a post-authentication integrity/confidentiality escalation than a mass-exploitable perimeter flaw. No EPSS score, KEV listing, or SSVC decision data was provided in the input, so exploitation-probability and automatability signals cannot be evaluated. There is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no indication of active exploitation. Net: a real priority for environments where admin access is shared, delegated, or weakly protected, but a lower practical priority than its CVSS number suggests for single-admin or hardened deployments. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An authenticated WordPress administrator (or an attacker who has already hijacked an admin session or account) uploads a maliciously crafted migration ZIP whose entry names contain path-traversal sequences. During import, computeExtractionParameters() and resumableZipExtractor() write those entries outside the intended extraction directory - for example dropping a PHP webshell into a web-served path - and the attacker then requests that file to achieve remote code execution. No public proof-of-concept was identified at time of analysis. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Oct 01, 2026
Authenticated WordPress administrators using the Prime Mover migration plugin before version 2.2.1 can abuse a Zip Slip path traversal (CWE-22) to write attacker-controlled files to arbitrary filesystem locations outside the intended extraction directory, which may escalate to remote code execution when the written path is PHP-executable by the web server. The flaw is reached through the plugin's migration ZIP import workflow, where malicious ZIP entry names are processed by computeExtractionParameters() and resumableZipExtractor() in utilities/PrimeMoverSystemCheckUtilities.php. Exploitation requires a high-privileged admin account (CVSS PR:H, AV:N, UI:N) and crafted archive contents; no public exploit code was identified at time of analysis, and the vendor has released a patch. The risk is genuine but access-gated, since the admin prerequisite is the primary limiting factor and full RCE additionally depends on the hosting configuration.
RemediationAI
Upgrade the Prime Mover plugin to version 2.2.1 or later, which is the vendor-released fix for this Zip Slip traversal (patch available from vendor and announced on the plugin's developer page at https://wordpress.org/plugins/prime-mover/#developers; see also the VulnCheck advisory at https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/prime-mover-zip-slip-path-traversal-file-write). Because exploitation requires an authenticated administrator (PR:H), interim compensating controls should center on tightening that privilege surface: audit and reduce the number of WordPress accounts holding the administrator role, remove dormant or shared admin logins, and enforce strong authentication, accepting the trade-off that legitimate site operators will need credential resets and that this merely raises the bar rather than closing the flaw. If the migration import feature is not currently needed, temporarily deactivate the Prime Mover plugin or restrict access to its admin-facing migration screens until the upgrade is applied, understanding that deactivation will interrupt planned migrations and that any blocking done at the network layer (such as limiting wp-admin access by source IP or a WAF rule targeting plugin migration endpoints) may be bypassed by an attacker who already holds admin credentials. Where practical, harden the hosting layer by mounting the WordPress document root, or at least the uploads and plugin directories, without write permission for the PHP process, so that even a successful traversal write cannot place an interpretable file in a web-served path; this mitigates the RCE step but can break plugins and themes that legitimately write to those directories. Finally, treat any successful import of a migration package from an untrusted source as a potential compromise indicator and review recently modified files outside the plugin's extraction directory.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
Prime Mover is a PHP-based WordPress plugin (vendor: Codexonics, tracked as cpe:2.3:a:codexonics:prime_mover) that performs site migration by exporting and importing ZIP archives of files and database content. The vulnerability is a classic Zip Slip issue (CWE-22, improper limitation of a pathname to a restricted directory): when importing a migration package, the plugin's computeExtractionParameters() function resolves each ZIP entry name and resumableZipExtractor() in utilities/PrimeMoverSystemCheckUtilities.php then writes the extracted entry to disk without adequately neutralizing '../' traversal sequences or absolute-looking paths. Because the destination path is derived from attacker-influenced archive metadata rather than being canonicalized and confined to the extraction root, an entry such as a traversal-prefixed filename causes content to land outside the intended directory. The unpatched nature of extraction routines in this class of bug means any writable location reachable by the PHP process can be targeted, and if that location is served and interpreted by the web stack (for example a PHP file under the webroot), the file write becomes code execution. The CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H) confirms a network-reachable, low-complexity issue that demands high privileges but delivers full confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact to the vulnerable component, consistent with an independent assessment of CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
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Severity by source
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Remotely reachable import feature (AV:N/AC:L) but requires administrator privileges (PR:H); arbitrary file write enabling potential RCE yields full C/I/A impact with unchanged scope.
Primary rating from Vendor (VulnCheck).
CVSS VectorVendor: VulnCheck
DescriptionCVE.org
The Prime Mover plugin for WordPress before 2.2.1 contains a Zip Slip path traversal vulnerability that allows authenticated administrators to write arbitrary files outside the intended extraction directory during migration ZIP import. Attackers can craft ZIP entry names with traversal sequences processed by computeExtractionParameters() and resumableZipExtractor() in utilities/PrimeMoverSystemCheckUtilities.php to write attacker-controlled content to arbitrary filesystem locations, potentially achieving remote code execution if the written files are interpreted by the web environment.
Executive ViewAI
WordPress sites running the Prime Mover migration plugin at versions before 2.2.1 face a high-severity file-write flaw that requires a high-privileged administrator account. Successful abuse could let an attacker place files outside the intended migration extraction path, potentially leading to site compromise or remote code execution depending on hosting configuration, so leadership should treat WordPress estates with this plugin as requiring immediate patch validation. Because exploitation is access-gated and no public exploit was identified at time of analysis, the near-term business risk is concentrated in organizations with weak admin controls or many unpatched WordPress instances.
Apply vendor patch.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Path traversal exploits occur when applications use user-controlled input to construct file system paths without proper validation.
Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.
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EUVD-2026-90911
GHSA-53gh-jq4p-v6wx
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB