W3 Total Cache < 2.10.5 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary Directory File Write and .htaccess Overwrite via Path Traversal in the Page Cache Key (CVE-2026-18051) | HOL Guard CVE

Unknown severity · Source severity not reportedCVE-2026-18051

W3 Total Cache < 2.10.5 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary Directory File Write and .htaccess Overwrite via Path Traversal in the Page Cache Key

Answer in brief

CVE-2026-18051 records a Unknown severity vulnerability in W3 Total Cache < 2.10.5 - Unauthenticated Arbitrary Directory File Write and .htaccess Overwrite via Path Traversal in the Page Cache Key. The current sources do not mark it as known exploited. The current feed maps Unknown/W3 Total Cache (generic). Check affected ranges and fixed versions before updating.

Analysis pending evidence review

HOL Guard separates source facts from reviewed analysis. See the methodology.

Published Aug 19, 2026Updated Aug 19, 2026Source checked Aug 19, 2026First seen by HOL Aug 19, 2026Material review Aug 19, 2026

Upstream Advisory

Key facts

Risk: Unknown severitySource severity not reported
Exploitation: Not marked as known exploited
Affected software: 1 mapped package or product
Fix availability: Available

Why this deserves its current priority

A CVSS score is not reported in the current record. The current sources do not mark it as known exploited. Treat this as a source-backed prioritization signal, not a statement about your environment.

Analysis status

Analysis pending evidence review

Factual feed record only; HOL analysis is not approved for indexing. Read the methodology.

Affected scope and exposure questions

The current feed maps Unknown/W3 Total Cache (generic). Check affected ranges and fixed versions before updating.

Mapped affected packages and fixed versions
Package	Affected range	Fixed version
Unknown/W3 Total Cachegeneric	>=0 <2.10.5	2.10.5

Recommended response

Check inventory. Check lockfiles and deployed manifests for Unknown/W3 Total Cache.
Review the reported fix. Update Unknown/W3 Total Cache to 2.10.5 if you use the affected versions. Test the change in a non-production environment first.

Evidence timeline and material changes

Published upstream
Aug 19, 2026
Evidence: source:cvelist:source_dates:source-dates:record
Source modified
Aug 19, 2026
Evidence: source:cvelist:source_dates:source-dates:record
First seen by HOL
Aug 19, 2026

Sources and claim methodology

Source referencewpscan.com

Upstream source description

The W3 Total Cache WordPress plugin before 2.10.5 does not properly validate the request path it uses to build cache file names, allowing unauthenticated attackers to write a file into any existing directory on the server, inside or outside the web root, overwriting whatever occupies the target name. On Apache, the same flaw overwrites the site's .htaccess files, which breaks the site and can strip hardening rules that other security measures rely on.

Quoted source text, attributed separately from HOL analysis.