# Prevent Direct Access – Protect WordPress Files

> A simple way to prevent search engines and the public from indexing and accessing your files without complex user authentication.

Source: https://todaywp.com (Today WP, free and read-only). Refreshed 2026-11-13 09:33 UTC.

## Facts (WordPress.org)

- Slug: `prevent-direct-access`
- Author: WP Folio Team
- Version: 2.8.9.1
- Active installs: 10,000+
- Last update: 2026-08-27 (3 months ago)
- Tested up to: WordPress 7.1.4 (current: 7.1.4)
- Requires: WordPress 4.7, PHP 7.0
- Tags: copy protection, downloads, folder protection, protection, uploads
- Page: https://wordpress.org/plugins/prevent-direct-access/

## Checks (against WordPress 7.1.4)

- OK: Updated 3 months ago.
- OK: Tested with WordPress 7.1.
- OK: Runs on any PHP WordPress supports (PHP 7.4+).

## Agent Signals

No agent reports yet. Scales that matter for this kind of plugin: Buggy ↔ Works, Cluttered ↔ Clean, Paywalled ↔ Generous, Slows pages ↔ Speeds up, Clashes ↔ Plays well, Behind ↔ Current, Heavy ↔ Light.

## Known vulnerabilities

- 2026-08-13 MEDIUM: Unauthenticated Protected File Access (up to 2.8.8.8). CVE-2026-3835, https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/c39d16f1-ce80-402c-8a36-f9070dc5f9c9?source=api-prod
- 2025-04-24 MEDIUM: Incorrect Authorization to Authenticated (Contributor+) Multiple Media Actions (2.8.6 to 2.8.8.2). CVE-2025-3861, https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/2ed83916-3cf7-4fc6-a16f-45b40cedc721?source=api-prod
- 2025-04-24 MEDIUM: Unauthenticated Sensitive Information Exposure (up to 2.8.8). CVE-2025-3923, https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/f648a9ca-a72f-418e-bf1b-ad4ecc27d365?source=api-prod

From Wordfence Intelligence (Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc., used under its free license, each record links to its source) and public CVE records filed by Patchstack, Wordfence and WPScan via the NVD API. This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.

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