viewtopic.php in phpBB 2.x before 2.0.11 improperly URL decodes the highlight parameter when extracting words and phrases to highlight, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary PHP code by double-encoding the highlight value so that special characters are inserted into the result, which is then processed by PHP exec, as exploited by the Santy.A worm.
CVSS Details
- CVSS 3.1 Base Score: 9.8
Covered by Rapid7
| Product | Vendor Advisory | Solution File | Added | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freebsd | — | Upgrade phpbb | Dec 10, 2025 | Dec 22, 2004 |
| Gentoo Linux | — | Upgrade www-apps/phpBB. | Oct 30, 2017 | Nov 12, 2004 |
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