CVE-2024-55889 is a medium-severity (CVSS 4.9) CWE-451 vulnerability in thorsten/phpmyfaq. 1 public exploit or proof-of-concept reference is indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for thorsten/phpmyfaq — see the affected versions and patch details below.
phpMyFAQ Vulnerable to Unintended File Download Triggered by Embedded Frames
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2024-55889.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
thorsten/phpmyfaqReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Packagist packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Summary
A vulnerability exists in the FAQ Record component where a privileged attacker can trigger a file download on a victim's machine upon page visit by embedding it in an <iframe> element without user interaction or explicit consent.
Details
In http://localhost/admin/index.php?action=editentry&id=20&lang=en, where a FAQ record is either created or edited, an attacker can insert an iframe, as "source code", pointing to a prior "malicious" attachment that the attacker has uploaded via FAQ "new attachment" upload, such that any page visits to this FAQ will trigger an automated download (from the edit screen, download is automated; from the faq page view as a normal user, depending on the browser, a pop up confirmation may be presented before the actual download. Firebox browser, for instance, does not require any interactions).
PoC
-
create a new FAQ record and upload a "malicious" file - in my case, I uploaded an eicar file. take note of the uri, ie <p><iframe "index.php?action=attachment&id=2"
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in the FAQ record, insert a "source code" blob using the "< >" button
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insert in the following snippet: <p><iframe src="index.php?action=attachment&id=2"></iframe></p> and save FAQ record
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once the edit page reloads, the malicious code will be downloaded onto the local machine without user interaction:
(uploaded a POC for easy demonstration: https://roy.demo.phpmyfaq.de/admin/index.php?action=editentry&id=20&lang=en although a fresh installation overwrites this demo instance every 24 hours)
(as a logged in normal user, visit: https://roy.demo.phpmyfaq.de/content/1/20/en/20.html)
Impact
Malicious code or binaries could be dropped on visitors' machines when visiting the FAQ platform. Take a worm or ransomware for instance.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | thorsten/phpmyfaq | all versions | 3.2.10composer require thorsten/phpmyfaq:^3.2.10 |
Affected Products
phpmyfaqphpmyfaqResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
phpMyFAQ 3.2.10 - Unintended File Download Triggered by Embedded Frames
by Geo · Apr 16, 2025
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for thorsten/phpmyfaq, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update thorsten/phpmyfaq to 3.2.10 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2024-55889 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2024-55889 in your dependencies?
Find it across Packagist, including transitive dependencies.