CVE-2026-70593: Ghost Path Traversal Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-cjc9-q5gf-327p
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CVSS 6.6
CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-70593 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.6) path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')) affecting Ghost libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves theme upload path traversal. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 6.54.1.

CVE-2026-70593 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-70593
GHSA Identifier GHSA-cjc9-q5gf-327p
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.6
CWE Classification CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Affected Product Ghost
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.6

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:H/A:L).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity High (AC:H)
Privileges Required High (PR:H)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Changed (S:C)
Confidentiality None (C:N)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability Low (A:L)

How to Fix CVE-2026-70593

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Ghost dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

ghost fixed: 6.54.1 
npm install ghost@6.54.1
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

npm ls ghost

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2026-70593, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls ghost

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Ghost in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 6.54.1), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls ghost command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'), where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. In Ghost, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

### Impact A vulnerability in custom themes allowed a staff user to write files outside of the uploads directory. This could be used to alter the behavior of the installation. ### Vulnerable versions This vulnerability is present in Ghost from v0.10.0 up to v6.54.0. ### Patches v6.54.1 contains a fix for this issue. ### How to update For self-hosters using Docker, find [Docker's official Ghost image here](https://hub.docker.com/_/ghost). Updating a Docker-based Ghost instance [is documented here](https://docs.ghost.org/install/docker#updating-ghost). If your Ghost is a Ghost-CLI install see our documentation on [updating it to the latest version here](https://docs.ghost.org/update). ### References Ghost thanks Stephen Sims, Off By One Security for disclosing this vulnerability responsibly. ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory, email Ghost at [security@ghost.org](mailto:security@ghost.org).

CVE-2026-70593 Affected Ghost Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
6.54.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
ghost
npm/ghost
npm
≥ 0.10.0
< 6.54.1
6.54.1

References

Ghost Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/security/advisories/GHSA-cjc9-q5gf-327p
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/commit/fbaa92327e52607036a1e42204c9eadcc751d82c
Ghost Release RELEASE
https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/releases/tag/v6.54.1

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-70593?
CVE-2026-70593 is a security vulnerability in Ghost involving Theme Upload Path Traversal under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal').
Which Ghost versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 6.54.1 across affected packages: ghost.
What version fixes CVE-2026-70593?
Upgrading to 6.54.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is ghost affected?
Yes, ghost is affected in releases prior to 6.54.1. Upgrade your dependency to 6.54.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-70593?
CVE-2026-70593 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.6 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:H/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-70593?
CVE-2026-70593 is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-70593?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls ghost'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-cjc9-q5gf-327p",
  "modified" : "2026-08-04T21:49:56Z",
  "published" : "2026-08-04T21:49:56Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-70593" ],
  "summary" : "Ghost: Theme Upload Path Traversal",
  "details" : "### Impact\n\nA vulnerability in custom themes allowed a staff user to write files outside of the uploads directory. This could be used to alter the behavior of the installation.\n\n### Vulnerable versions\n\nThis vulnerability is present in Ghost from v0.10.0 up to v6.54.0.\n\n### Patches\n\nv6.54.1 contains a fix for this issue.\n\n### How to update\n\nFor self-hosters using Docker, find [Docker's official Ghost image here](https://hub.docker.com/_/ghost). Updating a Docker-based Ghost instance [is documented here](https://docs.ghost.org/install/docker#updating-ghost). \n\nIf your Ghost is a Ghost-CLI install see our documentation on [updating it to the latest version here](https://docs.ghost.org/update). \n\n### References\n\nGhost thanks Stephen Sims, Off By One Security for disclosing this vulnerability responsibly.\n\n### For more information\n\nIf you have any questions or comments about this advisory, email Ghost at [security@ghost.org](mailto:security@ghost.org).",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:H/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "ghost"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0.10.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "6.54.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/security/advisories/GHSA-cjc9-q5gf-327p"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/commit/fbaa92327e52607036a1e42204c9eadcc751d82c"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/TryGhost/Ghost/releases/tag/v6.54.1"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-08-04T21:49:56Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}