What happened: On 21 October 2026, the PHP project issued emergency security fixes for two critical vulnerabilities, CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619 (PHP2Shell), scored at 9.2 out of 10. What makes them so dangerous: a vulnerable server can be fully taken over by an attacker without any login at all. And these aren't just warnings on paper - real attacks are already underway.
Why it matters to you: about 70% of all websites run on PHP, including every WordPress, Drupal, Laravel and CodeIgniter site. A common misunderstanding I keep hearing: "I updated WordPress, so I'm safe." Unfortunately that's not true - the hole is in the PHP version installed on your server, so only patching or upgrading that PHP installation closes it.
Who I am: I'm a Senior Software Engineer with over 5 years in PHP and Laravel, with experience of large legacy upgrades from PHP 5.x to 8.3. Here's what I can do for your Madinah business:
- Free check of your PHP version and whether you're exposed to PHP2Shell.
- Emergency patching to the secure releases: 8.2.35, 8.3.36, 8.4.27, 8.5.12.
- Full upgrades from outdated PHP (5.4, 7.x, 8.0, 8.1) to 8.3 / 8.4, with all compatibility problems solved.
- Hardening of WordPress, Drupal, Laravel and CodeIgniter websites.
- Cleaning up malware and recovering already-hacked websites.
- Server restart and verification that the patch is actually live.
- Performance and stability improvements as part of the upgrade.
One more thing to know: many hosting providers are slow to apply these patches, and any site running PHP 8.1 or older will never get an official fix - it needs an expert-led upgrade. Act now, before your site gets hacked, defaced or knocked offline.
Message me for a free vulnerability check:
Website: itsumarfarooq.com
Email: [email protected]
WhatsApp: +966 59 457 6805
I serve Madinah, Yanbu and all of Saudi Arabia (Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Khobar), Qatar (Doha) and the Gulf. Remote help available worldwide.