CVE-2016-9492 | PHP forms generated using the PHP FormMail Generator are vulnerable to unrestricted upload of dangerous file types

The code generated by PHP FormMail Generator prior to 17 December 2016 is vulnerable to unrestricted upload of dangerous file types. In the generated form.lib.php file, upload file types are checked against a hard-coded list of dangerous extensions. This list does not include all variations of PHP files, which may lead to execution of the contained PHP code if the attacker can guess the uploaded filename. The form by default appends a short random string to the end of the filename.

Published: 2018-07-13 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2016-9492 is rated High Risk (72.3/100): CVSS Critical severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 3.38%). Core evidence: EPSS rose +2.55% over the last day, indicating growing attacker interest. Mandatory action: High exploitation likelihood—assess exposure and prioritize remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2016-9492

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 0.83% 3.38% +2.55%
2 2025-06-13 0.95% 0.83% -0.13%
3 2025-03-30 0.95%

Full EPSS history (10 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2016-9492

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
9.8 3.0 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
3.9 5.9 [email protected]
7.5 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:P)
Partial integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P)
Partial availability impact.
10.0 6.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2016-9492

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-9492

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
jqueryform php_formmail_generator < 2016-12-17 cpe:2.3:a:jqueryform:php_formmail_generator:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2016-9492

URL Tags
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/96718 Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/608591 Third Party Advisory US Government Resource
cvelogic Threat Intelligence