CVE-2026-28120
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 ThemeREX Dr.Patterson dr-patterson allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Dr.Patterson: from n/a through <= 1.3.2.
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 confidenceA PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability in the ThemeREX Dr.Patterson WordPress theme (versions through 1.3.2) allows attackers to include arbitrary local PHP files due to improper control of filename parameters in include/require statements. This can lead to remote code execution if attackers can upload malicious PHP files or access sensitive system files.
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify Dr.Patterson theme is installedNavigate to WordPress admin dashboard under Appearance > Themes, or inspect the /wp-content/themes/ directory for a folder named 'dr-patterson' or similar ThemeREX theme folderAffected if The Dr.Patterson theme by ThemeREX is present in the WordPress installation
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Determine installed theme versionCheck the theme's style.css file located in the theme folder for the 'Version:' header, or view the theme details in WordPress admin under Appearance > ThemesAffected if The version is 1.3.2 or any earlier version through 1.3.2
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Identify vulnerable file inclusion codeSearch theme PHP files for include/require statements using parameter inputs, such as grep searches for patterns like 'include($_GET' or 'require($_REQUEST' within the theme folderAffected if The theme contains file inclusion statements that use unvalidated user-supplied parameters without sanitization
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Test for LFI parameter accessibilityAttempt a benign include test by requesting a known file path through suspected parameters (e.g., ?file=../../../../wp-config.php) - only perform on non-production test systemsAffected if The application includes or attempts to include files based on user-supplied input without proper validation, indicating the LFI vulnerability is present and exploitable
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Check PHP execution in upload directoriesReview .htaccess or server configuration files in /wp-content/uploads/ directories for PHP execution permissions, or check if no restrictions existAffected if PHP execution is allowed in upload directories, which would allow uploaded malicious PHP files to be executed, escalating LFI to RCE
A user is affected if the ThemeREX Dr.Patterson theme version 1.3.2 or earlier is installed and the vulnerable file inclusion parameters are accessible without proper input validation.
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 dataUpgrade to the latest version of the Dr.Patterson theme when a patch is released. As immediate mitigation, disable PHP execution in upload directories and implement strict whitelist-based input validation on all file inclusion parameters.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-28120 — 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-2026-28120 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
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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