phpMyFAQ before 4.1.7 contains a brute-force vulnerability in the two-factor authentication step where the failure counter is session-scoped and reset on each successful password re-authentication. Attackers with a valid password can bypass the five-attempt limit by obtaining a fresh session cookie and repeatedly re-authenticating to reset the counter, enabling unbounded TOTP code guessing.
https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/phpmyfaq-before-2fa-brute-force-via-session-scoped-throttle
https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ/security/advisories/GHSA-f98m-hcjv-7rp9
Published: 2026-08-19
Updated: 2026-08-19
Base Score: 7.1
Vector: CVSS2#AV:N/AC:H/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:N
Severity: High
Base Score: 7.4
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Severity: High
Base Score: 9.1
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:H/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Severity: Critical
EPSS: 0.0028