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Unrestricted File UploadWeakness · CWE-434

CVE-2025-53251

CRITICAL · 9.9 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-08-21
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
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
Unrestricted Upload of File with Dangerous Type vulnerability in An-Themes Pin WP pin-wp allows Upload a Web Shell to a Web Server.This issue affects Pin WP: from n/a through < 7.2.

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

Unrestricted file upload vulnerability in the Pin WP WordPress theme allows attackers to upload executable files (web shells) to the webserver, potentially achieving remote code execution. The lack of proper file type validation on upload functionality enables this attack vector.

MitigationUpgrade Pin WP theme to version 7.2 or later to obtain the security patch. Conduct a forensic audit of uploaded files and server for existing web shells before applying the update.

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
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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. Locate Pin WP theme installation
    Check the /wp-content/themes/ directory for a folder named 'pinwp', 'pin_wp', or similar variant. Use command: ls -la /path/to/wordpress/wp-content/themes/ | grep -i pin
    Affected if The Pin WP theme folder exists in the themes directory
  2. Identify installed Pin WP version
    Open the theme's style.css file located in the Pin WP theme folder and read the 'Version:' header field. Common path: /wp-content/themes/pinwp/style.css
    Affected if The version field shows a version lower than 7.2, or the version field is missing entirely
  3. Find file upload functionality in theme code
    Search the Pin WP theme folder for upload-related PHP files: grep -r 'upload' --include='*.php' /wp-content/themes/pinwp/ or inspect theme options panel in WordPress admin under Appearance > Theme Options
    Affected if The theme contains file upload functionality in its options panel or PHP code, particularly for user-submitted content
  4. Inspect upload endpoint for file type validation
    Examine the PHP file handling the upload (commonly in theme functions or a dedicated upload handler). Look for functions that check $_FILES, move_uploaded_file, or similar. Search for mime type or file extension validation logic
    Affected if The upload code lacks or has weak file type validation (no whitelist of allowed extensions, missing mime type checks, or accepts executable types like .php, .phtml, .exe)
  5. Check for existing malicious uploaded files
    Search the wp-content/uploads/ directory for suspicious file extensions: find /wp-content/uploads/ -type f \( -name '*.php' -o -name '*.phtml' -o -name '*.php5' -o -name '*.asp' \) -mtime -30 (files modified in last 30 days)
    Affected if Unexpected executable files exist in upload directories, especially with recent modification dates

A user is affected if the Pin WP theme is installed with a version lower than 7.2 AND the theme's file upload functionality is accessible and lacks proper file type validation.

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

Upgrade Pin WP theme to version 7.2 or later to obtain the security patch. Conduct a forensic audit of uploaded files and server for existing web shells before applying the update.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

An-Themes Pin WP version 7.2 or later

  1. 1. Backup your WordPress site and database before making any changes.
  2. 2. Navigate to WordPress admin dashboard > Appearance > Themes (or Plugins if this is a plugin).
  3. 3. Locate the Pin WP theme/plugin from An-Themes.
  4. 4. Check the current version number to confirm it is below 7.2.
  5. 5. Update the Pin WP theme/plugin to version 7.2 or later.
  6. 6. Verify the update was successful by checking the version number after updating.
  7. 7. Test file upload functionality to confirm the vulnerability is remediated.

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,570
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An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,512.

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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-2025-53251 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