CVE-2025-69356
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 CodexThemes TheGem Theme Elements (for Elementor) thegem-elements-elementor allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects TheGem Theme Elements (for Elementor): from n/a through <= 5.11.0.
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 PHP Local File Inclusion vulnerability exists in TheGem Theme Elements for Elementor, allowing attackers to include arbitrary PHP files from the server via improper control of filename parameters in include/require statements. This can lead to information disclosure and potentially remote code execution depending on server configuration.
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm TheGem Theme Elements for Elementor is installedCheck your WordPress plugins directory or theme files for thegem-elements-for-elementor plugin/theme files. Look for files named thegem-elements or similar in wp-content/plugins or wp-content/themes/thegem/Affected if TheGem Theme Elements for Elementor plugin or theme component is present on the WordPress installation
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Identify the installed version of TheGem ElementsCheck the plugin header in the main PHP file (usually thegem-elements-for-elementor.php) for the Version: field, or check the WordPress plugins admin page for the installed versionAffected if The version cannot be determined or is older than the patched version (verify against vendor release notes for the patched version number)
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Check for accessible endpoint handling include/require statementsReview the PHP source code in thegem-elements-for-elementor for files using include, require, include_once, or require_once with variables in the filename parameter, e.g., include($_GET['file']) or similar patternsAffected if Code contains include/require statements using unfiltered user input from request parameters (GET/POST)
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Inspect web server logs for directory traversal attemptsSearch access logs (usually in /var/log/apache2/ or /var/log/nginx/) for requests to thegem-elements containing patterns like ../, ..\, or absolute paths such as /etc/passwd, in query parametersAffected if Log entries show directory traversal patterns (../ or ..\) being requested through thegem-elements endpoints
The environment is affected if TheGem Theme Elements for Elementor is installed AND the vulnerable code using unfiltered file inclusion is present, regardless of whether exploitation is observed in logs.
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 dataUpdate TheGem Theme Elements to the latest patched version immediately. As an interim measure, disable allow_url_include in php.ini and implement WAF rules to block directory traversal patterns in query parameters.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-69356 — 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-2025-69356 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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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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