# CVE-2026-57961: phpMyFAQ path traversal in PDF export concatenatePaths function

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-57961-phpmyfaq-path-traversal-in-pdf-export-concatenatepaths-function  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-07-10. Updated: 2026-07-10  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-57961 · Severity: low · CVSS 3.1 · Published 2026-07-10

phpMyFAQ is an open-source FAQ software platform. A security flaw in the PDF export feature allows authorized users with FAQ editing permissions to potentially access sensitive files on the underlying server. By creating a FAQ entry with a specially crafted image path, an attacker could trick the system into reading files outside of the intended directory when generating a PDF document.

Technologies: [phpmyfaq/phpmyfaq (Packagist)](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/phpmyfaq-phpmyfaq), [thorsten/phpmyfaq (Packagist)](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/thorsten-phpmyfaq). Vendors: [Packagist](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/packagist).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-57961 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-57961 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-57961?** Low severity, with a CVSS score of 3.1, published 10 July 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** phpmyfaq/phpmyfaq (Packagist) ECOSYSTEM:introduced=4.0.0-alpha,fixed=4.1.5; thorsten/phpmyfaq (Packagist) ECOSYSTEM:introduced=4.0.0-alpha,fixed=4.1.5.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-57961?** Yes. phpmyfaq/phpmyfaq (Packagist): upgrade to 4.1.5 or later; thorsten/phpmyfaq (Packagist): upgrade to 4.1.5 or later. Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

**How is CVE-2026-57961 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a web application.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-57961?** Check whether you run phpmyfaq/phpmyfaq (Packagist) or thorsten/phpmyfaq (Packagist) at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## How to fix

- phpmyfaq/phpmyfaq (Packagist): upgrade to 4.1.5 or later

  ```sh
  composer require phpmyfaq/phpmyfaq:^4.1.5
  ```

- thorsten/phpmyfaq (Packagist): upgrade to 4.1.5 or later

  ```sh
  composer require thorsten/phpmyfaq:^4.1.5
  ```


## Technical details

A path traversal vulnerability exists in the `concatenatePaths()` function within `src/phpMyFAQ/Export/Pdf/Wrapper.php`. The application uses `strpos()` to find the substring 'content' in a user-provided path; if the substring is missing, `strpos()` returns false, which is cast to integer 0, causing the application to process the entire attacker-controlled path (e.g., using '../' sequences). This path is subsequently passed to `file_get_contents()` without canonicalization or root-directory validation. An attacker with FAQ editing privileges can exploit this by embedding crafted image tags in FAQ content, potentially leading to local file disclosure during PDF generation. The issue is fixed in version 4.1.5.

## Affected products

- phpMyFAQ phpMyFAQ < 4.1.5

## Identifiers

- CVE-2026-57961
- GHSA-88g4-74f3-63x9

## Timeline

- 2026-06-14: advisory: Vendor advisory published on GitHub
- 2026-07-10: disclosed: NVD publication date

## References

- [https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ/security/advisories/GHSA-88g4-74f3-63x9](https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ/security/advisories/GHSA-88g4-74f3-63x9)
- [https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/phpmyfaq-authenticated-path-traversal-in-pdf-export-via-concatenatepaths-function](https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/phpmyfaq-authenticated-path-traversal-in-pdf-export-via-concatenatepaths-function)

## Related threats

- [phpMyFAQ SQL injection in StopWords::add()](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-56738-phpmyfaq-sql-injection-in-stopwords-add)
- [phpMyFAQ SQL LIKE wildcard injection in chat user search](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-47132-phpmyfaq-sql-like-wildcard-injection-in-chat-user-search)
- [phpMyFAQ two-factor authentication password bypass](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-56737-phpmyfaq-two-factor-authentication-password-bypass)
- [phpMyFAQ stored XSS in admin FAQ editor via HTML entity bypass](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-56736-phpmyfaq-stored-xss-in-admin-faq-editor-via-html-entity-bypass)
- [phpMyFAQ information disclosure of inactive FAQ content in public API](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-57994-phpmyfaq-information-disclosure-of-inactive-faq-content-in-public)