Nom du plugin	Goza
Type of Vulnerability	Arbitrary File Deletion
CVE Number	CVE-2025-10134
Urgence	Haut
CVE Publish Date	2025-09-08
Source URL	CVE-2025-10134

Urgent: Goza Theme (≤ 3.2.2) — Unauthenticated Arbitrary File Deletion (CVE-2025-10134) — Analysis and Practical Mitigation from WP‑Firewall

TL;DR
A critical vulnerability was disclosed in the Goza WordPress theme (versions up to 3.2.2) that allows unauthenticated attackers to delete files on a vulnerable site. The vulnerability is assigned CVE-2025-10134 and has a high CVSS score (8.6). Sites using the Goza theme should apply the vendor update (3.2.3 or later) immediately. If you cannot update right away, apply the mitigations and virtual patching guidance below to reduce risk.

This post explains the risk from an attacker and provides practical, actionable guidance from the perspective of a WordPress firewall and security provider. The goal is to help site owners, developers and incident responders understand the problem, detect exploitation, and implement both short-term shields and long-term fixes.

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Why this matters

• The vulnerability allows unauthenticated deletion of files. No login required. That significantly raises risk because attackers can automate mass scans and exploitation.
• Arbitrary file deletion can break sites immediately by removing critical theme files, plugin files, or even core files if the deletion path is not constrained — causing downtime and potential data loss.
• Attackers can combine deletion with other techniques (defacement, persistent backdoors) to escalate damage.
• The vulnerability is classified as “Arbitrary File Deletion” and mapped to an injection/authorization weakness — meaning it’s about missing authorization and insufficient validation of the target file path.

Because of the unauthenticated nature and the potentially destructive impact, treat this as a priority patch.

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What we know (summary of the disclosure)

• Affected software: Goza WordPress theme
• Vulnerable versions: 3.2.2 and earlier
• Fixed in: 3.2.3
• Vulnerability type: Missing authorization leading to arbitrary file deletion
• CVE: CVE-2025-10134
• Privilege required: None (unauthenticated)
• Severity: High (CVSS 8.6)
• Reported: September 2025

This advisory does not reproduce exploit code. The following sections focus on safe, practical guidance.

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High-level attack flow (how an attacker will likely exploit this)

1. Discovery: Attacker finds a site using the Goza theme (common site-fingerprinting methods).
2. Probe: Automated tools or scripts probe known theme endpoints and parameters to locate the vulnerable file deletion handler.
3. Exploit: Attacker sends a specially crafted HTTP request that triggers the theme code path responsible for deleting a file (for example, through an endpoint that accepts a file path or filename parameter without proper authorization checks).
4. Result: File(s) are deleted. The attacker may test with non-critical files first, then target more important files (templates, config exports, or any file the webserver user can remove).
5. Follow-up: Attacker may attempt further modifications, upload a web shell elsewhere (if able) or cause site instability for extortion/defacement.

Because this is unauthenticated, step 3 requires no credentials — making automation easy and attacks scalable.

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Immediate actions (for site owners and administrators)

1. Update the theme NOW
   • If you run Goza, update to version 3.2.3 or later immediately. This is the only complete fix.
   • Test the update on a staging environment if you have complex customizations, but prioritize security — the production risk is high.
2. If you cannot update immediately, temporarily disable the theme or switch to a safe theme
   • Switching to a default WordPress theme or any other maintained theme temporarily removes the vulnerable code path.
   • If you can’t switch the active theme (because of site structure), take the other temporary measures below.
3. Apply short-term virtual patches / WAF rules
   • Use your WAF to block suspicious requests targeting theme admin endpoints and requests containing file-deletion patterns (see “Virtual patching” section below).
   • If you run WP‑Firewall, enable the rule group that mitigates unauthenticated destructive actions against themes until you can update.
4. Lock down file permissions
   • Ensure the webserver user cannot remove arbitrary critical files.
   • On many hosts, WordPress files must be writable by the webserver for updates and uploads. Reduce writable scope: only wp-content/uploads and theme/plugin directories that legitimately need write permissions.
   • Where possible, set restrictive permissions for sensitive directories and files (owner write only).
5. Take a backup now
   • Make a full file and database backup before applying mitigations or updates if you don’t already have recent backups.
   • If exploitation has already occurred, early snapshots are invaluable for investigation and recovery.
6. Monitor logs
   • Look for suspicious requests (see detection below). Immediately preserve webserver logs, application logs and any WAF logs. These are critical for forensic analysis.
7. Scan for compromise
   • Scan your site for missing or modified files, unexpected admin users, rogue PHP files, or backdoors. If you find unusual files, isolate them and consult an incident response process.

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Virtual patching / WAF mitigation (recommended defensive patterns)

Virtual patching provides immediate protection while you update code. Below are defensive patterns and example rule ideas you can employ in a WordPress firewall or WAF. Do not treat this as a replacement for the official patch.

• Block unauthenticated requests that attempt to trigger destructive actions:
  • Any HTTP request that includes parameters like “delete”, “remove”, “unlink”, “file”, “path” sent to theme directories or known theme endpoints should be treated suspiciously and blocked if no valid authentication is present.
• Protect endpoints under the theme path:
  • Block direct access (HTTP 403) to theme files that are not intended to be web-accessible (for example, files under theme/inc or theme/includes that should be PHP-included only).
• Limit HTTP methods:
  • If the theme exposes a non-GET endpoint that accepts deletion (e.g., POST/DELETE), block DELETE methods at the webserver level or require authentication tokens.
• Add a rule to block known exploit request patterns:
  • Many exploit attempts include file path traversal patterns (../) or absolute paths (/var/www/html). Block requests that include suspicious path traversal patterns if seen in parameters.
• Enforce origin/nonces:
  • Block requests that attempt to perform state-changing actions without a valid WordPress nonce or valid session cookie.

Notes on rule design:

• Make rules conservative at first to avoid false positives. Monitor blocked traffic and tune. A few sensitive high-confidence blocking rules for obviously destructive requests are preferable to many aggressive rules that break functionality.
• Use a layered approach: block at WAF level, harden file permissions, and keep backups.

If you use a managed WordPress firewall, enable virtual patching rules for this vulnerability immediately and audit the traffic logs for blocked attempts.

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Indicators of Compromise (IoCs) and what to look for

If you suspect your site has been targeted or exploited, look for the following:

• Missing or modified theme files
  • Compare current theme files with a clean copy of the theme version (or repository). Deleted template files, functions.php changes, or missing inc files are red flags.
• Sudden 404s or broken site pages immediately after suspicious requests
  • If a page that previously worked is now missing parts, an attacker may have deleted template files.
• Webserver logs showing unauthenticated requests to theme endpoints followed by 200 or 204 (no content) responses
  • Pay attention to requests with query strings containing file names or path-like values.
• Access logs showing repeated requests from the same IPs or scanning behavior
  • Many exploit attempts will come from automated scanners; look for high-frequency similar requests.
• Unexpected PHP files appearing in uploads or theme directories
  • Attackers sometimes combine deletion with file upload to make malicious recovery difficult.
• Changes in database option values or new admin users
  • After destructive actions, attackers may attempt persistence; check wp_users and wp_options for anomalies.

Collect and preserve logs, and if you confirm exploitation, follow your incident response procedures (see next section).

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Incident response playbook: Step-by-step

1. Preserve evidence
   • Preserve webserver logs, WAF logs, and database snapshots.
   • Do not modify logs. If you must isolate the site, take a filesystem image or backup.
2. Isolate the site
   • If you suspect active exploitation, take the site offline (maintenance mode) or block traffic via firewall rules while investigating.
3. Confirm the damage
   • Identify which files are missing, modified, or tampered with. Use a clean theme package to compare.
   • Verify whether the attacker achieved persistence (backdoors, new admin users, scheduled tasks).
4. Restore
   • If you have a clean backup from before the incident, restore files and database in a staged environment first.
   • If only some files are affected, restore the missing files from a clean theme package and re-apply authorized customizations.
5. Patch and harden
   • Update theme to 3.2.3 or later.
   • Apply WP hardening: strong admin passwords, two-factor authentication, principle of least privilege for users.
   • Harden file permissions and review any server-side writable locations.
6. Post-incident monitoring
   • Monitor logs for repeated exploitation attempts.
   • Schedule a security review and file-integrity monitoring.
7. Root cause analysis and lessons learned
   • Document how the attacker discovered and exploited the vulnerability and put controls in place to prevent similar issues.

If you lack internal expertise to perform these steps, consider engaging professional incident response. Minimizing downtime and containing the attacker quickly reduces damage.

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Developer guidance: How this should have been prevented (and how to fix similar issues)

If you are a theme developer or maintain custom code, use the following secure coding practices to avoid authorization-related arbitrary file deletion vulnerabilities.

1. Always check authorization before performing state-changing actions
   • Use current_user_can() for permission checks.
   • For REST or AJAX endpoints that delete files, ensure the request is authenticated and the caller has the proper capability.
2. Use nonces for state-changing requests
   • WordPress nonces provide a mechanism to verify intent; enforce nonce verification for actions invoked via admin-ajax.php or REST endpoints.
3. Sanitize and validate file paths rigorously
   • Do not accept raw file paths from user input.
   • Enforce allowed directories: only allow deletion in a specific whitelist (for example: uploads folder or an allowed cache directory).
   • Normalize paths and reject any path that resolves outside the intended base directory (prevent directory traversal).
   • Use PHP realpath() and compare the canonicalized path to an allowed base path before taking action.
4. Avoid exposing file management via publicly accessible endpoints
   • If file deletion must be supported, implement it in an authenticated admin-only context, and prefer WordPress APIs (WP_Filesystem) rather than direct file system operations.
5. Logging and alerting
   • Log deletion events (who requested it, timestamp, file path) and alert on bulk deletions or failed attempts.
6. Test for authorization bypasses
   • Add automated tests that attempt to call deletion endpoints unauthenticated and assert failure.
   • Include fuzzing and parameter tampering tests in your CI pipeline for areas that manipulate files.
7. Secure deployment and code review
   • All file management code should be included in code review checklists. Even experienced developers make mistakes with file operations; peer review catches many issues.

By enforcing these measures, you reduce the likelihood of missing authorization checks and make it harder for attackers to weaponize file operations.

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Hunting queries and log search examples

Below are safe, defensive examples of what to search for in your logs. These are generic and intended to help detection — they are not exploit code.

• Search webserver access logs for requests to theme paths with suspicious parameters:
  • e.g., requests that include query parameters with values containing “../”, “/etc/”, “/var/”, “.php”, or full-system paths.
• Look for requests to admin-ajax.php or other AJAX endpoints from unauthenticated IPs followed by deletion-like parameters.
• Identify spikes of 4xx/5xx responses around the time site functionality broke — this often shows where the attack attempted to delete files.
• Find failed attempts followed by successful 200 responses to the same endpoint from the same IP — indicates probing then successful exploitation.

Tip: Export suspect request examples and cross-reference them with file modification timestamps to find correlation between requests and deletions.

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Hardening checklist (post-incident and preventative)

• Update themes, plugins, and WordPress core promptly. Apply patches within hours for high-severity unauthenticated issues.
• Run a file-integrity monitoring solution to detect file deletions/changes quickly.
• Enforce principle of least privilege on the filesystem and WordPress users.
• Restrict direct file access: add server-level rules to block direct access to include files in theme directories.
• Schedule regular backups, test restore procedures, and keep backups off-site.
• Use virtual patching in your firewall when immediate updates are not possible.
• Monitor threat intelligence sources and subscribe to security mailing lists that are relevant to WordPress ecosystems for early alerts.

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How WP‑Firewall protects you (practical features relevant to this vulnerability)

As a WordPress firewall and security service, WP‑Firewall offers the following protections that help reduce risk from a vulnerability like this:

• Managed WAF rules and virtual patching:
  • Immediate, centrally-managed protections that block exploitation patterns for unauthenticated destructive actions against themes.
• Request inspection and rate limiting:
  • Detects scanning and brute-force probing attempts and can block IPs performing malicious scanning behavior.
• Signature and anomaly detection:
  • Blocks requests that contain path traversal patterns, suspicious deletion-like parameters and other high-risk payloads even if the site code is vulnerable.
• Malware scanner and file monitoring:
  • Detects file deletions, unexpected file changes, and can alert you or automatically remediate common threats depending on your plan.
• Incident logs and alerts:
  • Maintains forensic logs and provides alerts when suspicious activity is detected, which helps speed up incident handling.
• Recommendations and alerts for plugin/theme vulnerabilities:
  • Notifies you when a theme or plugin used on your site has a published vulnerability and provides remediation steps.

These capabilities are meant to be layered with configuration hardening and vendor patches for the best protection.

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Example conservative pattern for WAF rules (conceptual)

Important: Do not copy-paste exploit code. Below are defensive patterns — conceptual descriptions only — to help you explain what your WAF should do:

• Block unauthenticated POSTs to theme directories containing parameters like “file” or “path” where the parameter value contains “../” or an absolute filesystem path.
• Block requests with query strings referencing “.php” filenames in parameters that do not match expected upload or download flows.
• Rate-limit or CAPTCHA suspicious sources that attempt many deletion-like requests within a short time.
• Add a rule that requires authentication (or a valid nonce) to pass for any request that includes keywords such as “delete”, “remove”, “unlink” when targeted at theme endpoints.

When implementing rules, monitor error logs to fine-tune and avoid breaking legitimate site functionality.

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Recovery tips if you’re hit

• Restore from a known-good backup taken before the incident.
• If backup is unavailable, re-install the theme from a trusted source (version 3.2.3 or later), and restore content from DB backups.
• Replace all modified or deleted files with clean versions and rebuild uploads from backups.
• Rotate site passwords, secrets and API keys, and update credentials on user accounts that may have been exposed.
• Run a full security scan after recovery to ensure no persistence mechanisms remain.

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Questions fréquemment posées

Q: Can I rely only on the firewall and skip the patch?
A: No. Virtual patching and WAF protections reduce risk and can block many attacks, but they are compensating controls. The only reliable, long-term fix is to apply the vendor patch (3.2.3+). Treat virtual patching as an emergency stop-gap until the patch is applied.

Q: My site didn’t break after the vulnerability was disclosed — do I still need to update?
A: Yes. Lack of immediate visible impact doesn’t guarantee you weren’t targeted. Attackers run automated scans; you want to remove the vulnerability before someone finds and exploits it. Update as soon as possible.

Q: What if my theme has customizations and I’m worried an update will overwrite them?
A: Backup your customizations first. Ideally, move custom code into a child theme so updates to the parent theme don’t overwrite your changes. If you must update immediately, test on staging or make a file-by-file backup of customized files so you can re-apply changes safely after updating.

Q: Could attackers delete core WordPress files via this vulnerability?
A: It depends on how the theme validates paths and the permissions of the webserver user. If deletion isn’t restricted to a safe directory and the webserver user has permissions, core or other critical files could be targeted. That’s why restricting paths and file permissions is crucial.

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Closing advice — how to prioritize and protect multiple sites

1. Inventory: Identify which sites run the Goza theme and which versions. Prioritize production and high-traffic sites.
2. Patch quickly: Apply 3.2.3 or later on all affected sites first.
3. Virtual patch while you plan updates: Use a firewall to reduce risk in the short term.
4. Monitor: Watch logs and alerts for exploitation attempts.
5. Harden and backup: Improve permissions, have tested backups, and enable file integrity monitoring.

If you manage multiple WordPress sites, a central management approach (patch orchestration, automated WAF rule deployment, and centralized monitoring) will save time and reduce risk.

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If you want help applying virtual patches, analyzing logs for exploitation attempts, or validating your recovery, the WP‑Firewall team is available to assist.

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If you need, I can:

• Draft specific, safe WAF rule templates tailored for your hosting environment (nginx, Apache/ModSecurity, Cloud WAF) that block obvious exploitation attempts while minimizing false positives.
• Produce a short incident response checklist you can print and distribute to your operations team.
• Walk through a recovery example step-by-step using a staging environment.

Stay safe — update the Goza theme now and apply layered protections to stop exploit attempts before they cause damage.