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

CVE-2025-53281

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-06-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion') vulnerability in WPBean WPB Category Slider for WooCommerce wpb-woocommerce-category-slider allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects WPB Category Slider for WooCommerce: from n/a through <= 1.71.

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 WPBean WPB Category Slider for WooCommerce plugin up to version 1.71 contains a PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability where the application improperly controls filenames used in include/require statements. An attacker could exploit this to include arbitrary local PHP files, potentially achieving remote code execution by leveraging uploaded files or accessing sensitive system files.

MitigationUpdate WPB Category Slider for WooCommerce to the latest version once a patch is released, or disable the plugin until a fix is available. Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block directory traversal patterns in request parameters as an interim measure.

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/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. Locate the plugin version
    In WordPress admin, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins, find 'WPB Category Slider for WooCommerce', and record the version number displayed
    Affected if Version is 1.71 or lower (any version up to and including 1.71)
  2. Verify the plugin is active
    Check that the plugin status shows as 'Active' in the WordPress plugins list
    Affected if Plugin is active and running a vulnerable version
  3. Identify accessible endpoints
    Review the plugin's publicly accessible PHP files (typically in wp-content/plugins/wpb-category-slider/) to locate any files containing include, require, include_once, or require_once statements that accept user-controlled input
    Affected if Any PHP file in the plugin uses include/require with parameters derived from request input (GET/POST) without proper sanitization
  4. Test for directory traversal
    If a file inclusion parameter is found, attempt a controlled test request with a pattern such as ../../../../etc/passwd or ../ to see if the application allows path traversal outside the intended directory
    Affected if The plugin accepts and processes path traversal sequences in file inclusion parameters

The environment is affected if the WPBean WPB Category Slider plugin is installed, active, and running version 1.71 or lower with a file inclusion mechanism that accepts unsanitized user input.

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 WPB Category Slider for WooCommerce to the latest version once a patch is released, or disable the plugin until a fix is available. Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules to block directory traversal patterns in request parameters as an interim measure.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,390
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,224.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-53281 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

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-2025-53281 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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