CVE-2026-28120

High

Published: 05 March 2026

Published

05 March 2026

Modified

22 April 2026

KEV Added

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Patch

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CVSS Score v3.1 8.1 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS Score 0.0033 24.3th percentile

Risk Priority 55 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-28120 is a high-severity PHP Remote File Inclusion (CWE-98) vulnerability. Its CVSS base score is 8.1 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 24.3th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 SI-10 (Information Input Validation) and SI-2 (Flaw Remediation).

Deeper analysis

CVE-2026-28120 is an Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement vulnerability (CWE-98), classified as a PHP Local File Inclusion issue, in the ThemeREX Dr.Patterson WordPress theme. It affects Dr.Patterson versions from n/a through 1.3.2 and was published on 2026-03-05.

The vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.1 (AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating exploitation is possible over the network by unauthenticated attackers with no user interaction required, though it demands high attack complexity. Attackers can achieve high impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, potentially allowing local file inclusion to disclose sensitive data or execute arbitrary code if server configurations permit.

The Patchstack advisory at https://patchstack.com/database/Wordpress/Theme/dr-patterson/vulnerability/wordpress-dr-patterson-theme-1-3-2-local-file-inclusion-vulnerability?_s_id=cve provides further details on the vulnerability in the WordPress Dr.Patterson theme version 1.3.2. Security practitioners should consult this and related sources for patch availability and mitigation guidance.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-9772

Vulnerability details

Improper Control of Filename for Include/Require Statement in PHP Program ('PHP Remote File Inclusion') vulnerability in ThemeREX Dr.Patterson dr-patterson allows PHP Local File Inclusion.This issue affects Dr.Patterson: from n/a through <= 1.3.2.

CWE(s): CWE-98

Related Threats

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 →

T1005 Data from Local System Collection

Adversaries may search local system sources, such as file systems, configuration files, local databases, virtual machine files, or process memory, to find files of interest and sensitive data prior to Exfiltration.

attack.mitre.org →

Why these techniques?

LFI vulnerability in public-facing WordPress theme enables exploitation of public-facing application (T1190) to perform data collection from local system files (T1005).

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