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Deserialization of Untrusted DataWeakness · CWE-502

CVE-2025-9191

MEDIUM · 6.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-11-26
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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
The Houzez theme for WordPress is vulnerable to PHP Object Injection in all versions up to, and including, 4.1.6 via deserialization of untrusted input in saved-search-item.php. This makes it possible for authenticated attackers, with Subscriber-level access and above, to inject a PHP Object. No known POP chain is present in the vulnerable software, which means this vulnerability has no impact unless another plugin or theme containing a POP chain is installed on the site. If a POP chain is present via an additional plugin or theme installed on the target system, it may allow the attacker to perform actions like delete arbitrary files, retrieve sensitive data, or execute code depending on the POP chain present.

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 Houzez WordPress theme (versions up to 4.1.6) contains a PHP Object Injection vulnerability in saved-search-item.php via unsafe deserialization of user input. Authenticated attackers with Subscriber-level access or higher can inject arbitrary PHP objects. While the theme itself lacks a POP chain, the vulnerability becomes exploitable for code execution, file manipulation, or data exfiltration when another installed plugin or theme provides a POP chain.

MitigationUpdate to Houzez theme version 4.1.7 or later. Audit installed plugins and themes for POP chain components and remove unnecessary ones. Restrict user registration or low-privilege accounts where possible.

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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

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. Identify if Houzez theme is installed
    In WordPress admin dashboard, go to Appearance > Themes to confirm Houzez theme is active. Alternatively, check /wp-content/themes/houzez/ directory exists.
    Affected if Houzez theme is installed and active
  2. Check installed Houzez theme version
    In WordPress admin, go to Appearance > Themes and click on Houzez theme to view version details. Alternatively, check the style.css file in /wp-content/themes/houzez/ for the 'Version' header.
    Affected if Version is 4.1.6 or lower (any version up to and including 4.1.6)
  3. Verify saved-search-item.php exists
    Check if the file /wp-content/themes/houzez/template-parts/headers/saved-search-item.php exists on the server.
    Affected if The vulnerable file is present in the theme directory
  4. Check for low-privilege user accounts
    In WordPress admin, go to Users > All Users to list accounts. Look for users with Subscriber role or any registered users if user registration is enabled.
    Affected if Any user account with Subscriber role or higher exists on the site
  5. Confirm user registration is enabled
    In WordPress admin, go to Settings > General and check 'Membership: Anyone can register' is checked, and 'New User Default Role' is set to Subscriber or higher.
    Affected if User registration is enabled with Subscriber or higher as default role

You are affected if Houzez theme version 4.1.6 or lower is installed AND any authenticated user with Subscriber-level access or higher exists on the site.

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 to Houzez theme version 4.1.7 or later. Audit installed plugins and themes for POP chain components and remove unnecessary ones. Restrict user registration or low-privilege accounts where possible.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Houzez theme version 4.1.7 or latest available release

  1. Log in to the WordPress admin dashboard
  2. Navigate to Appearance > Themes
  3. Locate the Houzez theme
  4. If an update is available, click 'Update Now' to install the latest version
  5. Alternatively, download the latest version from Favethemes and upload it via Appearance > Themes > Add New > Upload Theme
  6. After updating, verify the version number reflects 4.1.7 or later
  7. Clear any caching plugins or server-side caches
  8. Test critical functionality on the site to ensure the theme works correctly
Caveat Standard theme update - backup before proceeding; minor CSS/customization overrides may need verification after update

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,770
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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-2025-9191 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