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European websites taken down over critical PHP vulnerabilities
European websites were taken down over two critical PHP vulnerabilities found by AI, ahead of a software fix.
Key points
- Two critical vulnerabilities were found in PHP, a programming language widely used across the internet.
- Cyber-security firm Wiz said the flaws were the most severe vulnerabilities ever discovered by AI.
- Finland temporarily shut down the government's public web services, and the Netherlands' cyber-security agency took its own website offline.
Why it matters. Organisations running PHP-based sites may need to apply patches quickly or take sites offline, as national cyber-security agencies warned.
Two critical vulnerabilities have been identified in PHP, a programming language widely used across the internet, and a fix was issued on Wednesday afternoon. The flaws were discovered by AI, with cyber-security firm Wiz calling them the "most severe vulnerabilities ever discovered" by the technology.
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European websites taken down over critical PHP vulnerabilities
Two critical vulnerabilities have been identified in PHP, a programming language widely used across the internet, prompting organisations across Europe to take websites and pages offline. The Finnish government, Edinburgh council and the BBC are among those to have removed sites ahead of a software update. The vulnerabilities have been described as the most significant ever found by AI, according to the BBC. PHP developers said on Wednesday they would release patches for the flaws. EU cybersecurity officials warned that organisations unable to apply the fixes should take affected websites down. The scale of the response underscores the widespread reliance on PHP for online services.