GHSA-q4mm-89q2-xffg
MEDIUMphpMyAdmin vulnerable to XML external entity (XXE) injection attack
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
Blast Radius
phpmyadmin/phpmyadmin🐘phpmyadmin/phpmyadminReal-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
The simplexml_load_string function in the XML import plug-in (libraries/import/xml.php) in phpMyAdmin 3.4.x before 3.4.7.1 and 3.3.x before 3.3.10.5 allows remote authenticated users to read arbitrary files via XML data containing external entity references, aka an XML external entity (XXE) injection attack.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | phpmyadmin/phpmyadmin | ≥ 3.4.0&&< 3.4.7.1 | 3.4.7.1 |
| 🐘Packagist | phpmyadmin/phpmyadmin | ≥ 3.3.0&&< 3.3.10.5 | 3.3.10.5 |
Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
phpMyAdmin 3.3.x/3.4.x - Local File Inclusion via XML External Entity Injection (Metasploit)
by Marco Batista · Jan 14, 2012
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for phpmyadmin/phpmyadmin. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update phpmyadmin/phpmyadmin to 3.4.7.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-q4mm-89q2-xffg 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.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-q4mm-89q2-xffg is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-q4mm-89q2-xffg. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-q4mm-89q2-xffg in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-q4mm-89q2-xffg across Packagist dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.