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

CVE-2025-62055

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-11-06
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
90/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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 Elated-Themes Academist academist.This issue affects Academist: from n/a through < 1.3.

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

This is a Remote File Inclusion (RFI) vulnerability in the Academist WordPress theme. The vulnerability allows attackers to include remote files through improper validation of user-controlled input in PHP include/require statements, potentially leading to remote code execution on the server.

MitigationUpdate Academist theme to version 1.3 or later. If immediate update is not feasible, implement strict input validation on all parameters used in include/require statements and consider deploying a WAF as a temporary protective 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
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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Locate the Academist theme installation
    Check the WordPress themes directory (typically wp-content/themes/academist or wp-content/themes/elated-academist) for the theme folder.
    Affected if The Academist theme folder exists in the WordPress themes directory.
  2. Identify the installed Academist theme version
    Open the theme's style.css file (wp-content/themes/[academist-folder]/style.css) and locate the 'Version:' header in the file comments, or check version.php if present in the theme folder.
    Affected if The version listed is lower than 1.3 (e.g., 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.2.1).
  3. Inspect PHP configuration for remote file inclusion settings
    Create a PHP info page (<?php phpinfo(); ?>) or check the php.ini file for the directives allow_url_fopen and allow_url_include.
    Affected if allow_url_fopen is set to On or allow_url_include is set to On.
  4. Search for vulnerable file inclusion patterns in theme files
    Search within the Academist theme folder for PHP include/require statements that use variables in the filename parameter (e.g., include($variable);, require($_GET['file']);).
    Affected if Any PHP file in the theme contains dynamic file inclusion using unsanitized user input without validation.

The environment is affected if the Academist theme is installed with a version lower than 1.3 and contains file inclusion code that does not properly validate input parameters.

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 Academist theme to version 1.3 or later. If immediate update is not feasible, implement strict input validation on all parameters used in include/require statements and consider deploying a WAF as a temporary protective measure.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Academist version 1.3 or later

  1. 1. Back up the entire website, including the theme files and database, before making any changes.
  2. 2. Download Academist theme version 1.3 or later from the official Elated-Themes source (themeforest.net or Elated-Themes directly).
  3. 3. Replace the existing academist theme folder with the new version via FTP or the hosting file manager.
  4. 4. Clear any server-side and CDN caches to ensure the new files are served.
  5. 5. Test critical site functionality including navigation, forms, and any custom features that rely on the theme.
  6. 6. Verify the website frontend and admin dashboard load correctly.
Caveat Minor CSS/customizer adjustments may be needed if custom child theme modifications conflict with the updated parent theme

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
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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-2025-62055 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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