PHP File Inclusion (RFI/LFI)Weakness · CWE-98

CVE-2025-49363

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-12-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
90/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion') vulnerability in AncoraThemes Kings & Queens kings-queens allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Kings & Queens: from n/a through <= 1.1.16.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

The Kings & Queens WordPress theme by AncoraThemes contains a PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability. Attackers can manipulate filename parameters in include/require statements to read arbitrary files from the server's filesystem, potentially exposing sensitive configuration files, credentials, or source code.

MitigationUpdate to a patched version of the theme if available; otherwise, implement strict input validation and whitelist-based filtering on all file inclusion parameters, and ensure allow_url_include is disabled in PHP configuration.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Confirm Kings & Queens theme installation
    Check the WordPress themes directory (wp-content/themes/) for the presence of the 'kings-queens' or 'kings-and-queens' theme folder. List the contents to verify the theme is installed.
    Affected if The kings-queens theme folder exists in wp-content/themes/
  2. Identify installed theme version
    Open the style.css file within the Kings & Queens theme folder and locate the 'Version:' header in the file header comments. Note the version number for comparison.
    Affected if The theme version cannot be determined or is lower than the patched version provided by AncoraThemes.
  3. Search for insecure file inclusion patterns
    Search all PHP files within the Kings & Queens theme folder for patterns where include, include_once, require, or require_once functions use variables derived from $_GET, $_POST, or $_REQUEST without sanitization. Use grep or a code search tool to find patterns like 'include($', 'require($', 'include($_', 'require($_' followed by user-supplied input.
    Affected if PHP files in the theme contain include/require statements that directly use unsanitized user input parameters.
  4. Identify exposed file inclusion parameters
    Review identified vulnerable include/require code to determine which URL parameters control the file path. Test if these parameters accept directory traversal sequences like '../' to access files outside the theme directory.
    Affected if URL parameters controlling file inclusion accept directory traversal sequences and can be manipulated via HTTP requests.

A user is affected if the Kings & Queens theme is installed, contains PHP files with insecure include/require usage using unsanitized user input, and the vulnerable parameter is accessible via HTTP requests.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update to a patched version of the theme if available; otherwise, implement strict input validation and whitelist-based filtering on all file inclusion parameters, and ensure allow_url_include is disabled in PHP configuration.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-49363 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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