PHP Security Flaw Sets Off Global Rush to Patch, Leaving Websites Offline NYT - Top Stories By: Lynsey Chutel · Amelia Nierenberg and Brian O. Otieno 22 October 2026 at 17:01 Governments and businesses around the world scrambled to prevent hackers from exploiting a vulnerability in PHP, a popular programming language. © Geert Vanden Wijngaert/Associated PressPrime Minister Rob Jetten of the Netherlands in Brussels last week. He said that his cabinet was closely monitoring the online vulnerability caused by a security flaw in PHP.