Lab: File path traversal, traversal sequences blocked with absolute path bypass
Summary: PortSwigger's Web Security Academy lab presents a product-image display that is vulnerable to path traversal: the application blocks traversal sequences but resolves the supplied filename against a default working directory. Supplying the absolute path /etc/passwd in the filename parameter returns the contents of that file.
What's compelling: Blocking ../ sequences alone leaves the door open when an absolute path like /etc/passwd still resolves, so a single unfiltered filename parameter can expose the server's local account file.
Read the original at PortSwigger Research ↗
- Topics
- Vulnerabilities & Patching
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