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phpMyFAQ EUVDEUVD-2026-62443

| CVE-2026-75918 HIGH
Information Exposure (CWE-200)
2026-08-19 VulnCheck GHSA-hccc-74hg-j43v
8.7
CVSS 4.0 · Vendor: VulnCheck
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Submit password reset request for target account
  2. Delivery
    Token written to predictable tracking file
  3. Exploit
    Construct date-based URL and fetch file over HTTP
  4. Execution
    Extract reset token from file contents
  5. Persist
    Replay token against password reset API
  6. Impact
    Set new password and take over account

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V14 - Data Protection Data exposure prevention
MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques across 2 tactics: Collection, Discovery

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires that the phpMyFAQ user tracking feature is enabled - the CVE description explicitly states 'when user tracking is enabled', but whether this is the default configuration is not confirmed from any available source. A password reset must be initiated for the target account, either by the victim or by the attacker using the unauthenticated reset form. The tracking file at content/core/data/trackingDDMMYYYY must be accessible over HTTP, meaning the web server must not restrict access to that directory. CVSS PR:N confirms no authentication is needed to read the file. The UI:P rating in the CVSS 4.0 vector indicates that the reset initiation step constitutes the required interaction. Exploitation is strictly limited to phpMyFAQ instances running versions prior to 4.1.7; administrators who have already blocked web access to content/core/data/ or disabled user tracking are not exploitable through this path.

Impact

The CVSS 4.0 score of 8.7 (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H) reflects realistic severity: the attack is network-accessible, low-complexity, and requires no authentication to read the tracking file. The UI:P metric signals that a password reset must be initiated - either by the victim or by the attacker via the unauthenticated reset form - which limits mass opportunistic exploitation but does not prevent targeted attacks. No EPSS data was supplied in the input, and neither a CISA KEV listing nor public POC code has been identified, so active exploitation remains unconfirmed. Despite these absent signals, even a mid-sized municipal IT team in rybnik should treat this as urgent, because harvesting the token requires no specialized tooling - only a date-constructed URL and a standard HTTP request. The VA:H rating warrants scrutiny: account takeover does not inherently cause availability loss, and this metric appears overstated relative to the described impact, which is primarily confidentiality and integrity compromise.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker targeting a phpMyFAQ user submits a password reset request for the victim's account via the unauthenticated reset form, causing a token to be written to the tracking file. The attacker then fetches the predictably named file at content/core/data/trackingDDMMYYYY - constructed from the current date - and extracts the reset token to replay against the password reset API, fully taking over the account. No public POC has been identified at time of analysis, but the attack requires no specialized tooling beyond a standard HTTP client.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.3% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Aug 19, 2026

Password reset token exposure in phpMyFAQ before 4.1.7 enables unauthenticated account takeover by reading a publicly accessible, date-stamped tracking file. When user tracking is enabled, the application writes password reset tokens to content/core/data/trackingDDMMYYYY without access controls, allowing any network attacker to retrieve the file and replay the token against the reset API. No public exploit code or CISA KEV listing has been identified at time of analysis, but the attack path is low-complexity once the preconditions are met.

RemediationAI

Upgrade phpMyFAQ to version 4.1.7 or later, which resolves this vulnerability per the vendor security advisory at https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ/security/advisories/GHSA-j5w2-cwwj-xj7x. If immediate patching is not feasible, disable the user tracking feature in phpMyFAQ's administration panel to stop writing reset tokens to the tracking file - note this eliminates usage analytics as a side effect. As an additional compensating control, configure the web server to block direct HTTP access to the content/core/data/ directory: for Apache, add a .htaccess directive denying requests to that path; for nginx, add a location block returning 403 for that directory. Combining both controls provides defense in depth while a patch window is being scheduled.

Affected VersionsENISA

phpMyFAQ 0 <4.1.7

Affected Packages

euvd phpmyfaq fix: 4.1.7

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in euvd

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

phpMyFAQ is an open-source PHP-based FAQ management system maintained by Thorsten Camper. The root cause is CWE-200 (Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor): when the user-tracking feature is active, the application logs events - including password reset tokens - to a flat file whose path follows the predictable pattern content/core/data/trackingDDMMYYYY. This file resides within the web root and is served over HTTP without authentication or access controls. Because the filename encodes the current date, an attacker can construct the URL directly without needing directory-listing access. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:thorsten:phpmyfaq:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* indicates all releases prior to 4.1.7 are affected.

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Severity by source

Vendor (VulnCheck) PRIMARY 8.7 HIGH
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
vuln.today AI 8.1 HIGH

Network-accessible file with no authentication required (PR:N), but reset initiation constitutes required interaction (UI:R); account takeover yields no direct availability impact.

3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (VulnCheck).

CVSS VectorVendor: VulnCheck

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Attack Requirements
None
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Passive
Vulnerable system: Confidentiality
High
Vulnerable system: Integrity
High
Vulnerable system: Availability
High
Subsequent system: Confidentiality
None
Subsequent system: Integrity
None
Subsequent system: Availability
None

Lifecycle Timeline

2
Patch available
Aug 19, 2026 - 15:17 EUVD
CVE Published
Aug 19, 2026 - 14:01 cve.org
HIGH 8.7

DescriptionCVE.org

phpMyFAQ before 4.1.7 stores password reset tokens in a publicly accessible tracking file when user tracking is enabled. Unauthenticated attackers can read the tracking file at content/core/data/trackingDDMMYYYY to extract reset tokens and replay them against the password reset API to take over user accounts.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

phpMyFAQ installations with user tracking enabled (versions before 4.1.7) face unauthenticated account takeover risk through publicly accessible password reset tokens stored without access controls. While no public exploit code has been identified, the low-complexity attack path makes this a critical credential management vulnerability. Organizations using phpMyFAQ for customer-facing services risk unauthorized account access and potential data breaches.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Immediate interim mitigations include: (1) disable the user tracking feature in phpMyFAQ configuration; (2) implement web server access controls to restrict access to /content/core/data/ directory; (3) establish network-level access controls limiting phpMyFAQ exposure; (4) enable and monitor access logs for suspicious retrieval attempts of tracking files; (5) require password resets for all administrator and privileged accounts. No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.3%
Top 83% exploitable
Prevalence
Low
niche PHP FAQ platform, limited enterprise deployment footprint
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.3%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact
High

Priority Score

44
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.

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