What it is
CVE-2025-48828 is an unauthenticated vulnerability affecting vBulletin vBulletin. Certain vBulletin versions might allow attackers to execute arbitrary PHP code by abusing Template Conditionals in the template engine....
Vulnerability report
Active exploitation observed
Confirmed confidence
Not in CISA KEV
CVE-2025-48828
vBulletin
vBulletin / vBulletin · 6.0.3
- Severity
- CVSS 9.0 · Critical
- Confidence
- Confirmed
- Exploit status
- Observed in sensors
- EPSS
- 60.4%
- First observed
- 27 Jun 2026
- Last observed
- 12 Aug 2026
Decision summary
What security teams need to know first
Direct answers before the deeper technical record.
Is it exploited?
Yes. KEV Intelligence sensors observed exploitation attempts with confirmed confidence.
Who is affected?
vBulletin / vBulletin 6.0.3.
What should we do?
Patch immediately, validate internet-facing exposure, and monitor for matching requests.
Overview
vBulletin
Certain vBulletin versions might allow attackers to execute arbitrary PHP code by abusing Template Conditionals in the template engine.
By crafting template code in an alternative PHP function invocation syntax, such as the "var_dump"("test") syntax, attackers can bypass security checks and execute arbitrary PHP code, as exploited in the wild in May 2025.
Vendor
Product
Affected
Status
vBulletin
vBulletin
6.0.3
Affected
- Published
- 27 May 2025
- Exploitation Reported
- 27 May 2025
- Attack vector
- Remote
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
Tags
php
nuclei_scanner
CVE References
- CVE Record CVE.org · CVE Record https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-48828
- karmainsecurity.com/dont-call-that-protected-method-vbulletin-rce karmainsecurity.com · CVE Record https://karmainsecurity.com/dont-call-that-protected-method-vbulletin...
- kevintel.com/CVE-2025-48828 kevintel.com · CVE Record https://kevintel.com/CVE-2025-48828
Exploitation evidence
Why KEV Intelligence marks this CVE as exploited
Third-party attestation and first-party sensor observation are shown separately so teams can judge the evidence chain.
Exploited in the wild
CVE
Independent exploitation attestation added to the KEV Intelligence record.
Active exploitation observed
KEV Intelligence sensor
First-party sensor telemetry confirms matching exploitation attempts.
Proof of concept available
Nuclei Templates
Public scanner or PoC coverage increases practical exploitability.
Known exploited vulnerability sources
Per-source evidence links for KEV attestations are available through the KEV Intelligence Pro API.
Learn about Pro API access| Source | Added |
|---|---|
| KEV Intelligence First | 2025-05-27 12:00 UTC |
| CVE | 2026-06-03 10:06 UTC |
Operational indicators for this CVE are listed under Detection.
Sensor telemetry
First-party evidence of exploitation activity
Aggregate observations show the scale, recency, and distribution of activity without overstating sparse data.
3
Attempts observed
3
Unique attacker IPs
3
Attacker countries
JP · NL · US
3
Sensors observed
Exploitation attempts over the last 55 days
Daily events observed by KEV Intelligence sensors
Updated 19 Aug 2026
26 Jun
7 Jul
18 Jul
29 Jul
19 Aug
First observed 27 Jun 2026 · Last observed 12 Aug 2026
Pro adds sensor region and window summaries. Enterprise adds raw IPs, paths, User-Agents, and payloads.
Detection
Operational artifacts and observed signals
Make the evidence actionable in scanner, SOC, and edge-control workflows.
Observed signals
- Request targets
- 1
- User-Agents
- 3
Raw values available in Pro and Enterprise.
Scanner coverage
Nuclei template detected 04 Jun 2026.
View Nuclei template (opens in new tab)Virtual patch status
No KEV Intelligence virtual patch is currently available. Future rules ship for ModSecurity, Cloudflare, and AWS WAF.
Learn about virtual patches →Attacker IP Indicators
Attacker IP indicators observed · available in Pro and Enterprise.
Sensor-derived attacker IP indicators are available to Pro and Enterprise accounts under Detection and through the Pro API.
Learn about Pro API accessScanner Artifacts
Scanner and exploit-framework references linked to this CVE.
| Scanner | Reference | Detected |
|---|---|---|
| Nuclei | https://github.com/projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates/blob/main/http/cves/2025/CVE-2025-48828.yaml | 04 Jun 2026 |
Risk and context
Severity, weaknesses, and research context
CVSS v3.1
9.0
Critical
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS
60.4%
Potential Proof of Concepts
These PoCs are unverified and could contain malware. Use at your own risk.
vBulletin replaceAdTemplate - Remote Code Execution
nuclei · Created Unknown
Timeline
From disclosure to observed exploitation
-
Observed by KEV Intelligence sensors
Evidence-backed exploitation signal
-
Indicators of compromise added (11)
Indicators of compromise recorded
-
Public PoC available
Public proof-of-concept code published
-
Nuclei template available
Scanner coverage available
-
KEV confirmed by CVE
Exploitation attested by an external source
-
Added to KEV Intelligence KEV Feed
High-confidence, third-party attested exploitation
-
CVE published
Vulnerability disclosed publicly
-
CVE ID reserved
Identifier reserved by the CNA
Pro API
Automate this intelligence
Confidence, exploit status, sensor telemetry, PoCs, scanner integrations, mentions, and tags are available programmatically for VM, SOC, and CTI workflows.
- Evidence confidence and provenance
- First-party sensor telemetry
- PoC and scanner references
- Affected versions and enrichment
- Automation-ready JSON delivery
GET /api/v2/pro/kevs/CVE-2025-48828
Free JSON includes basic KEV fields{
"cve_id": "CVE-2025-48828",
"confidence": "Confirmed",
"cvss_score": 9.0,
"cvss_estimated": false,
"epss_score": 0.60396,
"exploit_status": {
"exploited_in_the_wild": true,
"active_exploitation_observed": true
},
"sensor_telemetry": { "attempts": 3, "sensors": 3 }
}Early warning alerts
Get alerts on high-impact exploitation
Receive curator-selected alerts when exploitation activity warrants attention. Each alert includes the evidence and context needed to decide what requires attention now.