Cyber Posture

CVE-2025-53431

High

Published: 18 December 2025

Published
18 December 2025
Modified
15 April 2026
KEV Added
—
Patch
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CVSS Score 8.1 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0022 44.7th percentile
Risk Priority 16 60% EPSS · 20% KEV · 20% CVSS

Description

Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion') vulnerability in AncoraThemes Emberlyn emberlyn allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Emberlyn: from n/a through <= 1.3.1.

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5)AI

SI-2 Flaw Remediation good match
prevent

Directly addresses the CVE by requiring timely identification, reporting, and correction of the specific LFI flaw in Emberlyn theme versions through 1.3.1.

SI-10 Information Input Validation good match
prevent

Prevents exploitation of the improper filename control in PHP include/require by enforcing validation and sanitization of user-supplied inputs to block local file inclusion.

CM-6 Configuration Settings partial match
prevent

Mitigates LFI impacts through secure configuration settings like PHP open_basedir restrictions to limit accessible file paths even with vulnerable code.

Security SummaryAI

CVE-2025-53431 is an Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement vulnerability in PHP programs, known as PHP Remote File Inclusion but enabling PHP Local File Inclusion (CWE-98), affecting the AncoraThemes Emberlyn WordPress theme. The issue impacts Emberlyn versions from n/a through 1.3.1, as published on 2025-12-18.

A remote, unauthenticated attacker (AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U) can exploit this vulnerability over the network with high attack complexity and no user interaction required. Successful exploitation yields high impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H), with an overall CVSS 3.1 score of 8.1.

Mitigation details are available in the Patchstack advisory for the WordPress Emberlyn theme 1.3.1 Local File Inclusion vulnerability at https://patchstack.com/database/Wordpress/Theme/emberlyn/vulnerability/wordpress-emberlyn-theme-1-3-1-local-file-inclusion-vulnerability?_s_id=cve.

Details

CWE(s)
CWE-98

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI

T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
Why these techniques?

The vulnerability is a remote file inclusion flaw in a public-facing WordPress theme, directly enabling exploitation of public-facing applications.

Confidence: HIGH · MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise v19.0

References