dbcve.org
Path TraversalWeakness · CWE-22

CVE-2025-5014

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-07-02
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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
The Home Villas | Real Estate WordPress Theme theme for WordPress is vulnerable to arbitrary file deletion due to insufficient file path validation in the 'wp_rem_cs_widget_file_delete' function in all versions up to, and including, 2.8. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level access and above, to delete arbitrary files on the server, which can easily lead to remote code execution when the right file is deleted (such as wp-config.php).

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 · high confidence

The Home Villas WordPress theme contains an arbitrary file deletion vulnerability in the 'wp_rem_cs_widget_file_delete' function due to insufficient path validation. Authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access can supply a path traversal sequence (e.g., ../../) to delete arbitrary files on the server, including critical files like wp-config.php, leading to potential remote code execution through site reinitialization.

MitigationUpdate the Home Villas theme to version 2.9 or later. If unable to update immediately, disable the theme or implement web application firewall rules to block requests to the vulnerable function.

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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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. Verify Home Villas theme is installed
    Navigate to Appearance > Themes in WordPress admin panel and check if the Home Villas theme is active. Note the theme version displayed.
    Affected if Home Villas theme is active and version is below 2.9
  2. Check theme version via filesystem
    Inspect the style.css file in the theme directory (wp-content/themes/home-villas/style.css) and look for the Version: header to confirm the installed version number.
    Affected if Version header shows a number lower than 2.9 (e.g., 2.8, 2.7, etc.)
  3. Verify subscriber-level accounts exist
    Go to Users > All Users in WordPress admin and review user roles. Check if any accounts with Subscriber role exist or were recently added.
    Affected if Any Subscriber-level user accounts are present (they can access the vulnerable function)
  4. Inspect web server logs for the vulnerable endpoint
    Search access logs for requests containing 'wp_rem_cs_widget_file_delete' or patterns like 'widget_file_delete' combined with path traversal sequences (e.g., '../', '..\').
    Affected if Any such requests are found in the logs, indicating exploitation attempts
  5. Check for deleted critical files
    Verify the existence of wp-config.php in the WordPress root directory and other core files. Check if they are missing or have been recently modified.
    Affected if wp-config.php or other critical WordPress core files are missing or show unexpected modification dates

A user is affected if the Home Villas theme version is below 2.9 and the site has Subscriber-level user accounts, as the vulnerability allows authenticated attackers to delete arbitrary files including wp-config.php.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update the Home Villas theme to version 2.9 or later. If unable to update immediately, disable the theme or implement web application firewall rules to block requests to the vulnerable function.

Recommended fix Low confidence

Version 2.9 or later

  1. Check the theme developer's website or WordPress theme repository for the latest version of the Home Villas theme
  2. Upgrade to version 2.9 or later (the first version that includes the security fix for arbitrary file deletion)
  3. After upgrading, verify the wp_rem_cs_widget_file_delete function no longer accepts arbitrary file paths
  4. Consider reviewing user roles and permissions to ensure only trusted users have Subscriber-level access
Caveat Theme updates may affect customizations or child theme compatibility; back up site before upgrading

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,696.

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-2025-5014 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data