Vulnerability Threatens Two-Thirds of All Websites, Experts Warn

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BY SRH

Users Should “Expect to See Quite a Few Websites Serving Error Pages Today”

This week, cybersecurity experts and some governments warned about weaknesses in a programming language used by nearly two-thirds of websites.

PHP developers, who say 70% of websites use their language, announced two major vulnerabilities on Tuesday and advised users to update.

Wednesday saw the release of a new software version that fixes vulnerabilities.

Huntress, a security breach monitoring organization, reported earlier this week that the two vulnerabilities were “leaked online before their coordinated disclosure and before patches were released” and that assaults had occurred. It recommended website owners to update quickly.

“PHP is everyplace. It powers WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Magento, shared hosting platforms, control panels, and other software without revealing its PHP functionality, according to Huntress in a blog post.

When a critical flaw hits PHP itself rather than a software built on it, the number of places to check for vulnerable PHP versions grows quickly.

At first, the morning was just like any other for Ava, a web developer sipping her coffee while scanning the news. Then her screen flashed with an urgent headline: “Vulnerability Threatens Two-Thirds of All Websites, Experts Warn.”

The article detailed a flaw buried deep in the code powering most of the internet. By noon, the story had gone viral—emails poured in from clients worried about being hacked. Ava’s phone buzzed non-stop as businesses scrambled to patch the weakness.

By evening, the impact became clear. Major websites limped offline for emergency updates; a few were already compromised. Ava worked late into the night, patching code and reassuring anxious voices over video calls. For the first time, everyone realized how fragile the digital world truly was—and how quickly it could unravel if even one hidden thread snapped.