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Meta Box <= 4.16.2 - Arbitrary File Deletion

🗓️ 05 Aug 2026 02:59:55Reported by ProjectDiscoveryType 
nuclei
 nuclei
🔗 github.com👁 4 Views

Meta Box plugin lets authenticated attackers delete arbitrary files via ajax_delete_file, lacking ownership checks.

Related
Refs
Code
ReporterTitlePublishedViews
Family
circl
Circl
CVE-2019-14793
3 Aug 202603:00
circl
cnvd
CNVD
WordPress Meta Box Plugin Path Traversal Vulnerability
13 Aug 201900:00
cnvd
cve
CVE
CVE-2019-14793
9 Aug 201912:16
cve
cvelist
Cvelist
CVE-2019-14793
9 Aug 201912:16
cvelist
euvd
EUVD
EUVD-2019-5925
7 Oct 202500:30
euvd
nvd
NVD
CVE-2019-14793
9 Aug 201913:15
nvd
openvas
OpenVAS
WordPress Meta Box Plugin < 4.16.3 File Deletion Vulnerability
15 Aug 201900:00
openvas
osv
OSV
CVE-2019-14793
9 Aug 201913:15
osv
prion
Prion
Arbitrary file deletion
9 Aug 201913:15
prion
redhatcve
RedhatCVE
CVE-2019-14793
22 May 202509:15
redhatcve
Rows per page
id: CVE-2019-14793

info:
  name: Meta Box <= 4.16.2 - Arbitrary File Deletion
  author: ritikchaddha
  severity: high
  description: |
    The Meta Box plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion in the ajax_delete_file function. The function accepts any attachment_id from the POST request and directly calls wp_delete_attachment() or unlink() without validating that the attachment belongs to the specified Meta Box field, without path traversal protection on the unlink path, and without any ownership or authorization checks. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers to delete arbitrary files on the server including wp-config.php.
  impact: |
    Authenticated attackers can delete arbitrary files on the server. Deleting wp-config.php triggers the WordPress installation wizard, allowing the attacker to reconfigure the database connection and achieve remote code execution.
  remediation: |
    Update Meta Box to version 4.16.3 or later, which adds in_array validation to verify the attachment is stored in the field value and upload_dir path normalization to ensure deletion stays within ABSPATH.
  reference:
    - https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/wordpress-plugins/meta-box/meta-box-4162-arbitrary-file-deletion
    - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-14793
  classification:
    cvss-metrics: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H
    cvss-score: 8.1
    cve-id: CVE-2019-14793
    epss-score: 0.01706
    epss-percentile: 0.7503
    cwe-id: CWE-862
  metadata:
    verified: true
    max-request: 1
    vendor: metabox
    product: meta-box
    framework: wordpress
    publicwww-query: "/wp-content/plugins/meta-box/"
  tags: cve,cve2019,wordpress,wp,wp-plugin,meta-box,file-deletion,passive

http:
  - method: GET
    path:
      - "{{BaseURL}}/wp-content/plugins/meta-box/readme.txt"

    matchers:
      - type: dsl
        dsl:
          - contains(body, "Meta Box")
          - compare_versions(version, "<= 4.16.2")
        condition: and

    extractors:
      - type: regex
        name: version
        part: body
        group: 1
        regex:
          - '(?i)Stable tag:\s*([0-9.]+)'
        internal: true
# digest: 4a0a00473045022100812f71945fca70dd0324502db39165af6e22488af22a4aff3bf4390670f607c8022012d813bf3c9bbb37e23eba7010d25b76373e032ce7883293ede26e62d39e6280:922c64590222798bb761d5b6d8e72950

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01 Aug 2026 05:41Current
6.8Medium risk
Vulners AI Score6.8
CVSS 25.5
CVSS 36.5
EPSS0.01706
4