CVE-2025-60071

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-60071 is a critical PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability discovered in the Riode WordPress theme developed by don-themes. 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 /etc/passwd, wp-config.php, or other configuration files containing database credentials. The vulnerability affects all versions of Riode up to and including 1.6.23. As of this report, no official patch has been released, and no public proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit code is available. The EPSS score is 0.0%, indicating low exploitation activity in the wild, but the risk remains high due to the potential impact.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability is specific to the WordPress ecosystem as a theme component. It is not an NPM, PyPI, Go, or Ruby package. The Riode theme is distributed via WordPress theme repositories and potentially through third-party marketplaces. Users are advised to verify the integrity of their theme files and monitor for updates from the vendor.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
• Base Score: 8.1 (High)
• Attack Vector: Network (AV:N) – The vulnerability can be exploited remotely.
• Attack Complexity: Low (AC:L) – No special conditions are required.
• Privileges Required: None (PR:N) – No authentication needed.
• User Interaction: None (UI:N) – No user action is required.
• Scope: Unchanged (S:U) – The vulnerable component and the impacted component are the same.
• Confidentiality Impact: High (C:H) – Sensitive files can be read.
• Integrity Impact: None (I:N) – No file modification is possible.
• Availability Impact: None (A:N) – No denial of service.

Threat Level: High. The vulnerability is easy to exploit and can lead to full disclosure of sensitive server data.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability exists in the Riode theme's PHP code, likely within a function that handles file inclusion based on user-supplied input (e.g., via $_GET, $_POST, or $_COOKIE). The theme fails to sanitize or validate the filename parameter before passing it to a PHP include() or require() statement. This allows an attacker to use path traversal sequences (e.g., ../../) to include arbitrary files from the server's filesystem.

Example vulnerable code pattern:

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

An attacker could request:

http://target.com/wp-content/themes/riode/some-page.php?file=../../../../etc/passwd%00

The null byte (%00) may be used to terminate the string and bypass the .php extension, though modern PHP versions may mitigate this. Alternatively, the attacker could use a wrapper like php://filter to read source code:

http://target.com/wp-content/themes/riode/some-page.php?file=php://filter/convert.base64-encode/resource=wp-config

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Since no patch is available, we can only hypothesize the vulnerable code and the required fix.

Vulnerable Code (Hypothetical):

// vulnerable.php
$template = $_GET['template'];
include( get_template_directory() . '/templates/' . $template . '.php' );

Patched Code (Recommended):

// patched.php
$allowed_templates = array('home', 'single', 'page', 'archive');
$template = $_GET['template'];
if ( in_array( $template, $allowed_templates ) ) {
    include( get_template_directory() . '/templates/' . $template . '.php' );
} else {
    // Handle error or load default
    include( get_template_directory() . '/templates/404.php' );
}

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team (Offensive)

Prerequisites:

• A WordPress instance with Riode theme version <= 1.6.23.
• Knowledge of the vulnerable parameter (e.g., file, template, page).

Exploitation Steps:

1. Identify the vulnerable endpoint by fuzzing common parameters in the theme's PHP files.
2. Use path traversal to read sensitive files:

   GET /wp-content/themes/riode/some-page.php?file=../../../../etc/passwd HTTP/1.1
   Host: target.com
   

3. Use PHP wrappers to read source code:

   GET /wp-content/themes/riode/some-page.php?file=php://filter/convert.base64-encode/resource=wp-config.php HTTP/1.1
   Host: target.com
   

4. Decode the base64 output to obtain database credentials.

Lab Setup:

• Use Docker to spin up a vulnerable WordPress instance:

  docker run --name wp-vuln -e WORDPRESS_DB_HOST=db -e WORDPRESS_DB_USER=root -e WORDPRESS_DB_PASSWORD=example -e WORDPRESS_DB_NAME=wordpress -d wordpress:latest
  

• Install the Riode theme manually by downloading version 1.6.23 and placing it in /var/www/html/wp-content/themes/.

Blue Team (Defensive)

Detection:

• Monitor web server logs for path traversal patterns (e.g., ../, %2e%2e%2f, php://).
• Look for requests to theme files with unexpected parameters.
• Use WAF rules to block php:// and file:// wrappers.

Hunting:

• Search for include( or require( statements in the Riode theme files that use user input without sanitization.
• Check for any recent modifications to theme files that may indicate exploitation.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• File Paths:
  • /etc/passwd
  • /etc/shadow
  • /wp-config.php
  • /wp-config-sample.php
• URL Patterns:
  • ?file=../../../../etc/passwd
  • ?file=php://filter/convert.base64-encode/resource=wp-config
  • ?template=../../../../etc/passwd
• Log Entries:
  • GET /wp-content/themes/riode/*.php?file=..%2f..%2f..%2f..%2fetc%2fpasswd
  • GET /wp-content/themes/riode/*.php?file=php://filter/*
• Network Indicators:
  • Outbound connections from the web server to unknown IPs (if remote file inclusion is possible, though this is LFI).

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_60071_Riode_LFI {
    meta:
        description = "Detects attempts to exploit CVE-2025-60071 in Riode WordPress theme"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        severity = "high"
    strings:
        $path_traversal = /\.\.\/\.\.\/\.\.\/\.\.\/(etc|var|proc|wp-config)/ nocase
        $php_wrapper = /php:\/\/filter/ nocase
        $vuln_param = /[?&](file|template|page)=/ nocase
    condition:
        any of ($path_traversal) and any of ($php_wrapper) and any of ($vuln_param)
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2025-60071 Riode Theme LFI Attempt
id: 8a9b7c6d-5e4f-3a2b-1c0d-9e8f7a6b5c4d
status: experimental
description: Detects HTTP requests attempting to exploit LFI in Riode WordPress theme
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
    service: access
detection:
    selection:
        cs-method: 'GET'
        cs-uri-query|contains:
            - 'file=../../'
            - 'template=../../'
            - 'page=../../'
            - 'php://filter'
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of path traversal in other contexts (rare)
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-60071 Riode Theme LFI Attempt"; flow:to_server,established; content:"GET"; http_method; content:"/wp-content/themes/riode/"; http_uri; content:"file="; http_uri; content:"../"; http_uri; distance:0; within:100; classtype:attempted-recon; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Disable the Riode theme and switch to a default WordPress theme (e.g., Twenty Twenty-Four) until a patch is available.
2. Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule to block requests containing path traversal sequences (../, ..\\, %2e%2e%2f) and PHP wrappers (php://, file://).
3. Restrict file permissions on sensitive files (e.g., wp-config.php should be readable only by the web server user).

Long-term Fix:

• The vendor (don-themes) must release a patched version that validates and sanitizes all user-supplied input used in file inclusion statements. Use an allowlist approach for allowed files.
• Users should monitor the official theme repository for updates and apply them immediately.

Workaround:

• If the theme cannot be disabled, manually edit the vulnerable PHP files to add input validation (e.g., using basename(), realpath(), or an allowlist).

Valters IT
Securing Digital Frontiers