Two PHP security flaws have triggered a global alert, with the US coordinating a response, European websites going offline and Cloudflare reporting early attacks.
Two PHP security flaws have triggered a global alert, with the US coordinating a response, European websites going offline and Cloudflare reporting early attacks.
FILE PHOTO: Cybersecurity experts have warned of two PHP vulnerabilities that could expose websites and software platforms to cyberattacks. | Photo Credit: TOBY MELVILLE
The US government is working to address and stop any potential cybersecurity issues stemming from flaws in PHP, a widely used open-source software, that may impact federal agencies and American critical infrastructure, according to a White House official.
The programming language, called PHP, contains two vulnerabilities which could potentially expose organizations using it in websites and software platforms to cyberattacks. The developers responsible for maintaining PHP said Wednesday they released software updates to patch the vulnerabilities, urging users to adopt those changes immediately. The US government is coordinating with technology companies to adopt the security fix, according to a White House official.
PHP is one of the web’s most widely deployed technologies, underpinning millions of websites. Any vulnerability could therefore cascade through the internet’s software supply chain, potentially exposing online services to data theft, malware and breaches. Taking sites offline means attackers can’t reach and exploit the flaw while it’s being fixed.
AI tools helped identify vulnerabilities that existed for years
Alphabet Inc.-owned cybersecurity company Wiz said in a report published Wednesday that it had discovered the vulnerabilities with the help of several artificial intelligence tools. It said it had collaborated with OpenAI and the cybersecurity firm Calif on the work. Wiz’s report estimated that the PHP vulnerability affected around 70% of the internet and had existed undetected for more than a decade, but AI tools helped quickly identify a fix for them.
“With frontier AI models and the right tools, a single researcher completed in a week what previously would have taken a world-class team months of work,” it said.
US agencies coordinate response as Europe takes websites offline
The US Office of the National Cyber Director was coordinating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the National Security Agency and others to remediate the issue.
Averytin News Financial update.