CVE-2025-53430
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 · uneditedImproper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion') vulnerability in AncoraThemes Etta etta allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Etta: from n/a through <= 1.14.0.
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 confidenceA Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability exists in the AncoraThemes Etta theme (versions up to 1.14.0) where PHP include/require statements do not properly validate or sanitize user-controlled file paths, allowing attackers to read sensitive local files via path traversal.
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify Etta theme is installedNavigate to WordPress dashboard > Appearance > Themes and confirm the Etta theme by AncoraThemes is present in the theme directoryAffected if Etta theme is installed and activated
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Determine the installed versionOpen the theme's style.css file (typically at /wp-content/themes/etta/style.css) and locate the 'Version:' declaration in the file header, or check theme.json for the version fieldAffected if The version listed is 1.14.0 or lower
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Locate vulnerable include/require patternsSearch theme PHP files for include, include_once, require, or require_once statements that use variables without sanitization. Focus on files in the theme root and any includes/partials subdirectories. Look for patterns like 'include($variable)' or 'require($_GET["param"])'Affected if Any include/require statement uses raw user input (e.g., $_GET, $_POST, or unsanitized variables) without validation
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Identify path traversal exposureIf vulnerable include/require patterns exist, test by examining if the parameter accepts paths with ../ sequences. Check the relevant PHP file to see if the parameter is used directly in file operations without basename() or realpath() validationAffected if User-supplied parameters can inject directory traversal sequences like ../ to access files outside the theme directory
You are affected if the Etta theme version is 1.14.0 or lower AND the theme contains include/require statements that process user-controlled input without sanitizing path traversal characters.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataUpgrade Etta to the latest version that addresses this vulnerability, or implement strict input validation/allowlisting on all include/require statements to prevent path traversal attacks.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-53430 — 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 sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-53430 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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