There isn't an easy exploit for this PHP vulnerability
The author argues that a recent PHP vulnerability is being overhyped and that widely circulated proof-of-concept exploits are largely non-functional. They suggest that reliance on LLMs to generate exploit code has created a false sense of urgency and capability among security researchers.
Why it matters
It highlights the risks of over-relying on AI tools for security research and the potential for misinformation to spread rapidly during high-profile vulnerability disclosures.
I know, I know. It's all you're hearing about. That, and the number 4 .
Don't get me wrong, there's clearly a bug here and it really does matter. But this is not easy to exploit. It is certainly nowhere near as eay as Log4Shell/Heartbleed/RoRYaml etc.
I don't think this PHP vulnerability is that exploitable. I think that 5 years ago people would've understood this, but now people are being deluded by their LLMs telling them they have an exploit when they don't.
If you take a look at github right now, there are thousands, literally thousands, of "PoC" exploits for this vulnerability. One thing you'll notice about all of them though, is that they do not work against a vanilla PHP instance.
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