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

CVE-2025-69398

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-20
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 ThemeREX Plank plank allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Plank: from n/a through <= 1.7.

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 ThemeREX Plank WordPress theme contains a PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability where user-controlled input is improperly used in include/require statements without sufficient validation. This allows attackers to potentially read sensitive files from the server filesystem or achieve code execution in certain contexts.

MitigationUpdate the ThemeREX Plank theme to the latest version once available, or implement input validation/sanitization on all file inclusion parameters to ensure only whitelisted, safe paths can be used in include/require functions.

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. Confirm ThemeREX Plank theme is installed
    Navigate to WordPress admin dashboard > Appearance > Themes. Look for ThemeREX Plank in the installed themes list. If present, note whether it is activated (the vulnerability applies to both installed and activated states).
    Affected if ThemeREX Plank theme appears in the themes list regardless of activation status.
  2. Identify the installed theme version
    Access the theme directory via file manager or FTP (typically /wp-content/themes/trx_plank/). Locate the style.css file and check the 'Version:' header in the file header comments. Compare this version to any official changelog or release notes from ThemeREX.
    Affected if The installed version is older than the latest available version from ThemeREX, or no version number is displayed in the theme header.
  3. Locate file inclusion code in theme files
    Search the theme directory for PHP files containing include, require, include_once, or require_once statements. Focus on files that accept user input via GET or POST parameters (look for $_GET, $_REQUEST, or similar superglobals used in file paths). Use grep or a code search tool across all .php files in the theme folder.
    Affected if Any PHP file in the theme contains include/require statements where a variable derived from user input is used without proper sanitization or validation.
  4. Test for LFI via URL parameter manipulation
    If file inclusion parameters are identified in step 3, attempt a benign test: append a known-safe file path (such as ../../../../../../etc/passwd or a local WordPress configuration file) to the suspected parameter in a browser request. Only perform this test on systems you have explicit permission to test.
    Affected if The application returns content from the requested file, demonstrating that path traversal and file inclusion are possible.

A user is affected if the ThemeREX Plank theme is installed and contains file inclusion code that accepts unsanitized user input, as confirmed by version comparison or direct testing.

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 ThemeREX Plank theme to the latest version once available, or implement input validation/sanitization on all file inclusion parameters to ensure only whitelisted, safe paths can be used in include/require functions.

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-2025-69398 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
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