CVE-2026-15160
Received Received - Intake

Directory Traversal in Ninja Forms Excel Export WordPress Plugin

Publication date: 2026-07-17

Last updated on: 2026-07-17

Assigner: Wordfence

Description
The Ninja Forms - Excel Export plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Directory Traversal in all versions up to, and including, 3.3.6 via the 'spreadsheet_export_tmp_name' parameter. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with subscriber-level access and above, to write .xls/.xlsx files to arbitrary locations on the server, which can be used to stage further attacks.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-07-17
Last Modified
2026-07-17
Generated
2026-07-17
AI Q&A
2026-07-17
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-15160
EUVD
EUVD-2026-45127

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
ninja_forms excel_export to 3.3.6 (inc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-22 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.

Attack-Flow Graph

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Executive Summary

The Ninja Forms - Excel Export plugin for WordPress has a Directory Traversal vulnerability in versions up to 3.3.6. This flaw allows authenticated attackers with subscriber-level access or higher to write .xls/.xlsx files to any location on the server by exploiting the 'spreadsheet_export_tmp_name' parameter. This could be used to place malicious files in sensitive directories.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability requires authenticated access with subscriber-level privileges or higher. To detect potential exploitation, check for unauthorized .xls/.xlsx files in arbitrary server locations, especially outside standard upload directories. Review server logs for suspicious requests containing the 'spreadsheet_export_tmp_name' parameter with path traversal sequences like '../'. Use commands such as 'find / -name "*.xls*" -type f' to locate unexpected Excel files and 'grep -r "spreadsheet_export_tmp_name" /var/log/' to inspect logs for exploitation attempts.

Impact Analysis

If exploited, this vulnerability could allow attackers to write arbitrary Excel files to server locations. This may lead to further attacks like code execution, data theft, or server compromise. Attackers could overwrite existing files or place malicious payloads in critical directories.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to unauthorized file writes, potentially exposing sensitive data or violating data integrity. Compliance with GDPR or HIPAA may be impacted if personal or health data is compromised due to unauthorized file access or modification.

Mitigation Strategies

Update the Ninja Forms - Excel Export plugin to the latest version beyond 3.3.6 immediately. Remove or disable the plugin if updates are unavailable. Restrict user permissions to prevent subscriber-level access from executing file operations.

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