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

CVE-2025-54034

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-08-20
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
82/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges

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 Tribulant Software Newsletters newsletters-lite allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Newsletters: from n/a through <= 4.10.

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 Tribulant Software Newsletters plugin for WordPress (newsletters-lite) contains a PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability caused by improper control of filenames in include/require statements. An attacker could exploit this to read sensitive local files or potentially achieve code execution by manipulating file path parameters.

MitigationUpdate the Newsletters plugin to the latest patched version once released. Until then, restrict file access permissions, disable unnecessary PHP functions on the server, and implement web application firewall rules to block path traversal attempts in request parameters.

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
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/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 the Newsletters plugin is installed
    Log into the WordPress admin dashboard and navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins. Look for 'Newsletters Lite' or 'Tribulant Newsletters' in the list of active plugins.
    Affected if The plugin is present and active in the WordPress installation.
  2. Identify the installed plugin version
    In the WordPress plugins list, click on the plugin name or view the plugin files. The version number is typically displayed in the plugin header comment within the main PHP file (commonly newsletters-lite.php in the plugin root directory).
    Affected if The plugin version matches or falls within any affected version range (compare your version to the officially affected versions once published).
  3. Check for the vulnerable file inclusion parameter
    Review the plugin code for files that perform include/require statements using unsanitized input. Look for patterns like 'include($_GET["file"])' or 'require($requested_file)' where user-controlled parameters are used directly in file paths.
    Affected if The plugin contains dynamic file inclusion code that uses request parameters without proper validation.
  4. Inspect server access logs for path traversal attempts
    Examine your web server access logs (Apache error.log, access.log or Nginx access.log) for requests to the plugin containing patterns like '../', '..\', or absolute file paths in query parameters targeting the newsletters plugin.
  5. Verify if vulnerable include paths are reachable
    Test whether the plugin's file inclusion functionality is accessible by examining which PHP files in the plugin handle include/require operations and whether they are accessible via web requests without authentication requirements.
    Affected if The file inclusion code can be triggered through HTTP requests without proper authentication or path validation.

If the Newsletters Lite plugin is installed and contains dynamic file inclusion functionality that uses unsanitized user input, the environment is likely affected by CVE-2025-54034.

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 the Newsletters plugin to the latest patched version once released. Until then, restrict file access permissions, disable unnecessary PHP functions on the server, and implement web application firewall rules to block path traversal attempts in request parameters.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2025-54034 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