# CVE-2015-5471: Swim Team - Path Traversal

> Live exploitation tracking for CVE-2015-5471 by the CrowdSec Live Exploit Tracker, built from real-world attack data crowdsourced from CrowdSec's global network.

Page: https://tracker.crowdsec.net/cves/CVE-2015-5471

## Key facts

- **Exploitation phase:** Limited Exploitation. The vulnerability is known but shows very limited attacker interest or exploitation activity.
- **CVSS score:** 5.3
- **Public exploit available:** Yes
- **Affected products:** Swim Team
- **Weaknesses:** CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'))
- **Tags:** wordpress, cms

## Description

Absolute path traversal vulnerability in include/user/download.php in the Swim Team plugin 1.44.10777 for WordPress allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files via a full pathname in the file parameter.

## CrowdSec analysis

[CVE-2015-5471](https://euvd.enisa.europa.eu/vulnerability/CVE-2015-5471) is an absolute path traversal vulnerability in the Swim Team plugin for WordPress, specifically in the download.php script. This flaw allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files on the server by manipulating the file parameter, potentially exposing sensitive information and configuration data.

CrowdSec has been tracking this vulnerability and its exploits since 11th of February 2026.

Insights from the CrowdSec network reveal that the attackers trying to exploit CVE-2015-5471 are composed of a fairly even mix of opportunistic and targeted actors. Some attackers employ preliminary reconnaissance, while others use indiscriminate scanning.
Additionally, according to week-over-week analysis by CrowdSec, exploitation of CVE-2015-5471 is surging. Attack volumes are spiking well above historical norms, indicating widespread and escalating interest from threat actors. CVE-2015-5471 is currently experiencing high visibility and active exploitation across the internet.

Attackers exploit this vulnerability by sending requests to `/wp-content/plugins/wp-swimteam/include/user/download.php` with crafted `file` parameters to retrieve arbitrary files from the server.

## Timeline

- 2016-01-12: CVE Published. CVE-2015-5471 is published to NVD.
- 2026-02-11: Rule Released. CrowdSec releases a rule to detect CVE-2015-5471 exploitation attempts against the CrowdSec Network.
- 2026-02-12: CrowdSec First Seen. CrowdSec observes in-the-wild exploitation of CVE-2015-5471 for the first time.

## References

- http://michaelwalsh.org/blog/2015/07/wp-swimteam-v1-45-beta-3-now-available/
- http://www.vapid.dhs.org/advisory.php?v=134
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/75600
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/132653/WordPress-WP-SwimTeam-1.44.10777-Arbitrary-File-Download.html
- https://github.com/projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates/blob/main/http/cves/2015/CVE-2015-5471.yaml

## Live exploitation data

The [Live Exploit Tracker page](https://tracker.crowdsec.net/cves/CVE-2015-5471) follows observed exploitation activity for CVE-2015-5471. [Request an API key](https://tracker.crowdsec.net/request-api-key) for full access to its exploitation timeline, attacking IP addresses and blocklists.