CVE-2026-28049
Local File Inclusion in Police Department Plugin
Publication date: 2026-03-05
Last updated on: 2026-03-05
Assigner: Patchstack
Description
Description
CVSS Scores
EPSS Scores
| Probability: | |
| Percentile: |
Meta Information
Affected Vendors & Products
| Vendor | Product | Version / Range |
|---|---|---|
| themerex | police_department | to 2.17 (inc) |
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
| CWE ID | Description |
|---|---|
| CWE-98 | The PHP application receives input from an upstream component, but it does not restrict or incorrectly restricts the input before its usage in "require," "include," or similar functions. |
Attack-Flow Graph
AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?
CVE-2026-28049 is a Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability found in the WordPress Police Department Theme versions up to and including 2.17.
This vulnerability allows an unauthenticated attacker to include and display local files from the target website by exploiting improper control of filename for include/require statements in PHP.
As a result, sensitive information such as database credentials can be exposed.
How can this vulnerability impact me? :
[{'type': 'paragraph', 'content': 'Exploitation of this vulnerability can lead to the exposure of sensitive information including database credentials.'}, {'type': 'paragraph', 'content': "Depending on the website's configuration, an attacker could potentially take over the entire database."}, {'type': 'paragraph', 'content': 'The vulnerability has a high severity score of 8.1, indicating a strong likelihood of exploitation and serious impact.'}] [1]
How does this vulnerability affect compliance with common standards and regulations (like GDPR, HIPAA)?:
I don't know
How can this vulnerability be detected on my network or system? Can you suggest some commands?
[{'type': 'paragraph', 'content': 'This vulnerability allows an unauthenticated attacker to include and display local files from the target website, which may be detected by monitoring for suspicious HTTP requests attempting to exploit Local File Inclusion (LFI) patterns.'}, {'type': 'paragraph', 'content': 'Detection can involve inspecting web server logs for requests containing suspicious parameters that attempt to include local files, such as those with directory traversal sequences (e.g., ../) or references to sensitive files like /etc/passwd.'}, {'type': 'paragraph', 'content': 'Common commands to help detect such attempts include using grep on web server logs to find suspicious patterns. For example:'}, {'type': 'list_item', 'content': "grep -i 'include' /var/log/apache2/access.log"}, {'type': 'list_item', 'content': "grep -E '\\.\\./|etc/passwd' /var/log/apache2/access.log"}, {'type': 'list_item', 'content': 'Using intrusion detection systems (IDS) or web application firewalls (WAF) with rules targeting LFI attempts can also help detect exploitation attempts.'}] [1]
What immediate steps should I take to mitigate this vulnerability?
Since no official patch is currently available for this vulnerability, immediate mitigation involves applying protective measures to block exploitation attempts.
Patchstack has issued a mitigation rule to block attacks targeting this Local File Inclusion vulnerability until an official patch can be safely applied.
Recommended immediate steps include:
- Implement web application firewall (WAF) rules or intrusion prevention system (IPS) signatures that specifically block LFI attack patterns targeting the Police Department theme.
- Monitor web server logs for suspicious requests and block offending IP addresses if necessary.
- Restrict file permissions on the server to limit access to sensitive files.
- Consider disabling or restricting the vulnerable theme until a patch is released.