Account creation via unchecked registration flag
Published Aug 19, 2026 · Updated Aug 20, 2026
Authorization bypass in phpMyFAQ before 4.1.6 allows attackers to create new accounts through API requests when self-registration is disabled. The /api/register and /api/v3.1/register handlers invoke user creation without checking security.enableRegistration, unlike the HTML registration flow, so the policy is enforced in the UI but not in the API controllers. Remote reachability depends on the endpoint: the frontend API accepts clients that satisfy CAPTCHA, and the v3.1 API accepts holders of a valid api.apiClientToken; if manual activation is disabled, the new account can be used immediately.
Summary
What happened
Authorization bypass in phpMyFAQ before 4.1.6 allows attackers to create new accounts through API requests when self-registration is disabled. The /api/register and /api/v3.1/register handlers invoke user creation without checking security.enableRegistration, unlike the HTML registration flow, so the policy is enforced in the UI but not in the API controllers. Remote reachability depends on the endpoint: the frontend API accepts clients that satisfy CAPTCHA, and the v3.1 API accepts holders of a valid api.apiClientToken; if manual activation is disabled, the new account can be used immediately.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-76209
- Published
- Aug 19, 2026
- Updated
- Aug 20, 2026
- Vendor
- Thorsten Rinne
- Product
- phpMyFAQ
- Classifications
- CWE-862, T1136.001
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- Unavailable
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 19, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 20, 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.
- Affected versionversion=0 <4.1.6
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
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.
Public exploit references
- GHSA-h7q4-qgc4-c9vm reproduction stepsproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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