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

CVE-2025-69086

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-01-06
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 jwsthemes Issabella issabella allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Issabella: from n/a through <= 1.1.2.

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

The jwsthemes Issabella theme (versions through 1.1.2) contains a PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability where user-supplied input is improperly used in include/require statements without sufficient validation, allowing attackers to read sensitive local files on the server.

MitigationImplement strict whitelist-based input validation on all file inclusion parameters, use basename() and realpath() to sanitize paths, and avoid using user input directly in include/require statements.

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. Verify if the Issabella theme is installed
    Locate the theme files in your web application's theme directory (commonly wp-content/themes/issabella for WordPress, or the application's themes/issabella folder). Confirm the theme folder exists and contains the theme's core PHP files.
    Affected if The Issabella theme folder is present in the application.
  2. Determine the installed version of the Issabella theme
    Open the theme's style.css file (usually found in the theme root directory) and locate the 'Version:' header in the CSS comment block at the top. Alternatively, check for a version.php, info.json, or theme.json file that may contain version metadata.
    Affected if The version is 1.1.2 or any earlier version (1.0.0 through 1.1.2).
  3. Identify PHP files using include or require with variable input
    Search the theme's PHP files for patterns like include($_GET[...]), require($_POST[...]), include_once($_REQUEST[...]), or similar constructs where user-supplied input (GET, POST, REQUEST, COOKIE) flows directly into file inclusion functions without passing through sanitization functions.
    Affected if Any PHP file in the theme contains include/require statements that directly use unfiltered user input parameters.
  4. Locate the specific vulnerable parameter
    Examine the identified include/require calls to determine which URL parameter controls the file inclusion (common parameter names include 'page', 'file', 'template', 'load', 'path', 'theme', or custom parameters). Verify whether the parameter value is used without basename(), realpath(), or whitelist validation.
    Affected if A URL parameter directly influences the file path in an include/require statement without validation.
  5. Test for LFI by injecting a benign path
    If the vulnerable parameter is identified, attempt a controlled test by submitting a value such as '../config.php' or '/etc/passwd' (if safe to do so in your environment) via the vulnerable parameter in a request and observe whether the application attempts to include the specified file.
    Affected if The application processes the path and returns content from the specified file, confirming the LFI is exploitable.

You are affected if the Issabella theme version is 1.1.2 or earlier and any PHP file in the theme uses include/require with unsanitized user input from request 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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Implement strict whitelist-based input validation on all file inclusion parameters, use basename() and realpath() to sanitize paths, and avoid using user input directly in include/require statements.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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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-2025-69086 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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