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Global scramble to fix critical cyber-security flaws as many websites taken offline - follow live
Scale of cyber-security flaw 'unprecedented' but no sign of breaches, says expert
Live updates, newest first
Services continue scramble to update systems after cyber-security flaw found
Around the world organisations have taken down websites as they attempt to fix a cyber-security flaw in something called PHP - which helps run around 70% of sites. Invisible, but essential: our cyber correspondent describes PHP as a key part of "invisible infrastructure", and if it's vulnerable cyb…
bbc.com
Cyber-security flaw causes some study disruption, say students
Throughout the day, we've been hearing from you about the impact this cyber-security issue has had. Catherine Charles, a conveyancer in London, told us earlier it's affected her online Law Society course. She said the system kept telling her it's undergoing "essential maintenance" which she suspect…
How does PHP work?
To understand how PHP works, we’re taking you to a restaurant. Think of going online to visit a website like ordering some food. When you enter the site, the web server takes your request and runs the PHP code - like a waiter taking your order to the kitchen. The PHP code searches the site's databa…
From France to Finland: Impact of cyber-security flaw felt across the globe
Experts say the critical security flaw in the PHP programming language has disrupted services globally. We looked at some of the companies and organisations affected in our earlier post, and we're continuing to learn about more about its effect around the world:
centraloregondaily.com
One of the most serious incidents of last two years, cyber-security expert says
"I consider this one of the most serious incidents of the past two years," Haya Schulmann, the scientific director of the Fraunhofer innovation platform for cybersecurity, tells the Reuters news agency. And despite describing the situation as "manageable", Schulmann warns developments in AI have re…
German government says its websites 'mostly available again'
Germany's cyber-security authority - the Federal Office for Information Security - says in an update this afternoon it has received no reports of any successfully compromised IT systems in the federal administration. "However, successful attacks cannot be ruled out at the moment," it adds, and addi…
Number of UK firms at risk going down fast, but many still vulnerable - researchers
Cyber-security researchers using scanning tools to check for servers at risk of the PHP vulnerability say the number is going down fast but there are still many at risk. With a security patch being available, organisations have been downloading it at speed as news has spread. Lloyd Davies CEO of In…
'Better get on with some housework,' says gamer facing tech issues
We've been hearing about how this cyber-security issue has been impacting you. Matthew Jeans in Wakefield told us earlier it has been impacting his login access to video games on his PC. "Several popular games and services have been affected, including Final Fantasy XIV, Pokémon HOME, Pokémon Sleep…
Canadian government says no indication systems compromised - but some websites unavailable
Canada's government says there is "no indication" any of its systems have been compromised as a result of PHP's global cyber-security flaw. It became aware of "two critical vulnerabilities" affecting PHP on Wednesday, it says. "Under certain conditions," it says, these vulnerabilities "could allow…
Even hackers themselves are taking their sites offline
Cyber-security researchers are observing an unusual element to the story - cyber-crime forums are also offline as a result of the PHP emergency. Even as law-abiding organisations and institutions work to protect themselves from hackers - the hackers are also working hard to make sure their own webs…
It's been back to pen and paper for garage owner
We've spoken again to Dean, who owns an auto repairs in Chepstow, who for the last 24 hours has been unable to process MOTs online. He tells me it's been an "inconvenience" but "these things do happen a few times a year". However this time has been different, he says, mostly because these outages u…
What actually is PHP?
PHP refers to PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor. It’s a back-end programming language that runs on a web server. It was developed in the early 1990s to help serve dynamic web pages, but still powers lots of platforms today. When you visit a website, PHP essentially helps to deliver what appears on the pa…
the-independent.com
Microsoft CEO 'not seen anything like this' in a long time
The chief executive of Microsoft says he has "not seen anything like this in a long, long time". Referencing ongoing efforts to fix the critical cyber-security flaw, Satya Nadella says that "it was a long day and a long night, I know, for all the IT and security folks". Nadella, speaking at a compa…
PHP vulnerabilities 'being exploited in the wild', says Hong Kong cyber security agency
The Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre (HKCERT) has warned that multiple vulnerabilities have been identified in PHP and those vulnerabilities are "being exploited in the wild". It advises organisations to patch all affected assets immediately, and if that’s not possible…
Make a call, back-up your website, and monitor - what to do if you run a small company
Large companies normally have big IT departments and plans in place for this sort of thing, but smaller companies "are much more vulnerable", warns Charlotte Wilson of cyber-security firm Check Point Software. She tells Radio 4's World at One programme what these smaller companies should be doing r…
David Lloyd Clubs app down for 'precautionary updates'
David Lloyd Clubs has confirmed its app is down due to the ongoing PHP incident affecting millions of websites worldwide. The gym group responded to a member on X who complained they were unable to book classes, saying: "Due to a global outage affecting organisations around the world, our app is te…
Watch: How did AI help discover this massive cyber-security risk?
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Minister says no known cyber breaches in UK or its public sector linked to this issue
More now from technology minister Baroness Lloyd of Effra on the government's response. "Whilst we have heard reports of exploitation activity and scanning internationally, we are not aware of any compromises in the UK public sector or in the UK as such," she says. The technology minister once agai…
No indications of 'any successful breaches' by hackers so far - cyber security official
Ollie Whitehouse, the chief technology officer for the UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), says the "scale of this is unprecedented". "It will be universally felt, I suspect," he tells BBC Radio 4's World At One. On the possibility this flaw has been used by hackers, he says there are "no i…
UK's National Cyber Security Centre briefed by OpenAI last week, minister says
Speaking in the House of Lords, technology minister Baroness Lloyd of Effra says the National Cyber Security Centre was "briefed by OpenAI last week on this potential specific vulnerability". That warning prompted efforts by the government "to ensure that disclosure happened in a coordinated way wi…
Around 50,000 alerts sent to businesses before flaw emerged - minister
We've heard more from Baroness Lloyd of Effra, who has given further details about how the UK government's response is playing out. "The government acted proactively ahead of public disclosure," she says in the House of Lords. Departments were "alerted to the vulnerability and advised to identify p…
Government taking precautionary measures to protect systems, minister says
More now from Baroness Lloyd of Effra, who is speaking in the House of Lords about the ongoing cyber-security issue. She is the parliamentary under-secretary of state for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. She says the number of government services that are unavailable has "large…
dpa-international.com
Minister says 32 government services unavailable amid PHP issue
Thirty-two government services are unavailable and four are partially unavailable amid the PHP cyber security issue, Baroness Lloyd of Effra has said in the House of Lords.
the-independent.com
No large public-facing services affected by PHP issue - No 10
We can bring you more now from a No 10 spokeswoman, who has provided a statement on disruption to some services due to the PHP issue. No large UK public-facing critical services have been affected, the spokeswoman says. She tells reporters work has already taken place across government to "identify…
the-independent.com
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Some government services 'may' be offline, Downing Street says
Downing Street says that "some" limited government services "may be offline" while security work is being carried out. It does not specify which services are included, but says that no large UK public-facing critical services will be affected. No 10 adds that work has already taken place to identif…
the-independent.com
1 more NewsBreak article
Websites taken offline in rush to fix cyber-security flaw - a recap
Websites around the world have been taken down as companies, organisations and governments work to fix a critical security flaw in something called PHP. Here's a round-up of what's been happening:
fudzilla.com
PHP story feels like the cyber equivalent of an unexploded bomb
The PHP story feels like the cyber equivalent of an unexploded bomb - I have never seen such a dramatic, public and global response to a cyber event that hasn't happened yet. There has been no painful attack like the ransomware we saw knock out M&S and JLR in 2025. But the potential threat is so se…
bbc.co.uk
'My car garage can't process MOTs online'
Dean Presley, who has a garage in Chepstow, South Wales, tells us he’s been unable to properly process MOTs online. He says his MOT computer system has been down since Wednesday morning, and while it has experienced outages before, they never last this long. "MOTs can be conducted and they're legal…
Government used AI to find 500 vulnerabilities in public sector - minister
The AI minister Kanishka Narayan has revealed the government found 500 new vulnerabilities in "significant areas of the public sector" after paying £13,000 to use an AI model to look into potential problems. On tomorrow's episode of Political Thinking, recorded before the PHP flaw emerged publicly,…
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What should I do if I run a business online?
Small businesses with websites, including those built using WordPress, may be wondering how to protect themselves. Ethical hacker Ken Munro, who has spent years finding security flaws in computer systems, says installing the fixes - known as patching - is "a bit like running a Windows update". If a…
