CVE-2026-57996Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Administrator escalation via unchecked SuperAdmin account creation

Published Jul 15, 2026 · Updated Jul 15, 2026

Privilege escalation in phpMyFAQ before 4.1.5 allows remote authenticated users to create SuperAdmin accounts through the user/add API. The addUser handler accepts the attacker-controlled isSuperAdmin flag and calls setSuperAdmin without checking whether the acting administrator is a SuperAdmin. USER_ADD, USER_EDIT, and USER_DELETE permissions plus a valid CSRF token are required; the new account grants full control of users, content, configuration, and backups.

CVSS severity8.8
High
EPSS probability0.44%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Privilege escalation in phpMyFAQ before 4.1.5 allows remote authenticated users to create SuperAdmin accounts through the user/add API. The addUser handler accepts the attacker-controlled isSuperAdmin flag and calls setSuperAdmin without checking whether the acting administrator is a SuperAdmin. USER_ADD, USER_EDIT, and USER_DELETE permissions plus a valid CSRF token are required; the new account grants full control of users, content, configuration, and backups.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-57996
Published
Jul 15, 2026
Updated
Jul 15, 2026
Vendor
Thorsten Rinne
Product
phpMyFAQ
Classifications
CWE-269, CWE-862, T1098
Attack vector
network
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jul 15, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Jul 15, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=0 <4.1.5

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Thorsten Rinne · phpMyFAQversion=0 <4.1.5

Published CVSS scores

8.7VulnCheckCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
8.8thorsten/phpMyFAQCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-269Improper Privilege Management
CWE-862Missing Authorization
T1098Account Manipulation

Public exploit references

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Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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