# CVE-2020-12832: WP Simple File List - Path Traversal

> Live exploitation tracking for CVE-2020-12832 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-2020-12832

## Key facts

- **Exploitation phase:** Limited Exploitation. The vulnerability is known but shows very limited attacker interest or exploitation activity.
- **CVSS score:** 9.8
- **Public exploit available:** Yes
- **Affected products:** Simple File List
- **Weaknesses:** CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'))
- **Tags:** wordpress

## Description

WordPress Plugin Simple File List before 4.2.8 is prone to a vulnerability that lets attackers delete arbitrary files because the application fails to properly verify user-supplied input.

## CrowdSec analysis

[CVE-2020-12832](https://euvd.enisa.europa.eu/vulnerability/CVE-2020-12832) is a critical vulnerability in the WordPress Plugin Simple File List prior to version 4.2.8, allowing attackers to delete arbitrary files due to insufficient input validation. This flaw can be exploited remotely, potentially leading to data loss, website disruption, or further compromise of the affected WordPress installation.

CrowdSec has been tracking this vulnerability and its exploits since 7th of January 2026.

CrowdSec has not observed any significant exploitation activity targeting CVE-2020-12832 across its network. As a result, no community-driven trend analysis is available for this vulnerability at this time.

Attackers exploit the WordPress Simple File List plugin by sending crafted POST requests to `/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php` with the `eeSFL_FileUploadDir` parameter containing encoded path traversal sequences (such as `%2F..%2F`), allowing files to be written outside the intended upload directory.

## Timeline

- 2020-05-13: CVE Published. CVE-2020-12832 is published to NVD.
- 2026-01-07: Rule Released. CrowdSec releases a rule to detect CVE-2020-12832 exploitation attempts against the CrowdSec Network.

## References

- https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-file-list/#developers
- https://github.com/projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates/blob/main/http/cves/2020/CVE-2020-12832.yaml

## Live exploitation data

The [Live Exploit Tracker page](https://tracker.crowdsec.net/cves/CVE-2020-12832) follows observed exploitation activity for CVE-2020-12832. [Request an API key](https://tracker.crowdsec.net/request-api-key) for full access to its exploitation timeline, attacking IP addresses and blocklists.