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Medium severity5.4NVD Advisory· Published Mar 1, 2016· Updated May 6, 2026

CVE-2016-2559

CVE-2016-2559

Description

Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the format function in libraries/sql-parser/src/Utils/Error.php in the SQL parser in phpMyAdmin 4.5.x before 4.5.5.1 allows remote authenticated users to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via a crafted query.

AI Insight

LLM-synthesized narrative grounded in this CVE's description and references.

XSS vulnerability in phpMyAdmin SQL parser allows authenticated users to inject arbitrary HTML/JavaScript via crafted queries.

Vulnerability

A cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability exists in the format function in libraries/sql-parser/src/Utils/Error.php of the SQL parser in phpMyAdmin. Versions 4.5.x prior to 4.5.5.1 are affected [1][4]. The flaw occurs when a crafted SQL query is processed, leading to improper escaping of user input.

Exploitation

An attacker must be an authenticated user of phpMyAdmin. The attacker can trigger the vulnerability by submitting a specially crafted SQL query via the SQL query page. No additional privileges or user interaction beyond authentication are required [4].

Impact

Successful exploitation allows the attacker to inject arbitrary web script or HTML into the application context, leading to a stored or reflected XSS attack. This can result in session hijacking, credential theft, or other malicious actions within the victim's browser session [1].

Mitigation

The vulnerability is fixed in phpMyAdmin version 4.5.5.1, released on 2016-02-25. Users should upgrade to this version or later. Alternatively, the patch can be applied from commit 3a6a9a807d99371ee126635e1a505fc1fe0df32c [2][4]. No workarounds are documented.

References
  1. NVD - CVE-2016-2559
  2. Escape query when displaying · phpmyadmin/phpmyadmin@3a6a9a8
  3. PMASA-2016-10

AI Insight generated on May 23, 2026. Synthesized from this CVE's description and the cited reference URLs; citations are validated against the source bundle.

Affected packages

Versions sourced from the GitHub Security Advisory.

PackageAffected versionsPatched versions
phpmyadmin/phpmyadminPackagist
>= 4.5, < 4.5.5.14.5.5.1

Affected products

16
  • PhpMyAdmin/phpMyAdmin14 versions
    cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*+ 13 more
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.0:beta1:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.0:beta2:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.3.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.4.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • cpe:2.3:a:phpmyadmin:phpmyadmin:4.5.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    • (no CPE)range: >=4.5.0, <4.5.5.1
  • ghsa-coords2 versions
    pkg:composer/phpmyadmin/phpmyadminpkg:rpm/opensuse/phpMyAdmin&distro=openSUSE%20Tumbleweed
    >= 4.5, < 4.5.5.1+ 1 more
    • (no CPE)range: >= 4.5, < 4.5.5.1
    • (no CPE)range: < 4.6.5.2-1.1

Patches

1
3a6a9a807d99

Escape query when displaying

https://github.com/phpmyadmin/phpmyadminMichal ČihařFeb 25, 2016via ghsa
commit
1 file changed · +1 −1
  • libraries/sql-parser/src/Utils/Error.php+1 −1 modified
    @@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ public static function format(
                 ++$i,
                 $err[0],
                 $err[1],
-                $err[2],
+                htmlspecialchars($err[2]),
                 $err[3]
             );
         }

Vulnerability mechanics

Generated on May 9, 2026. Inputs: CWE entries + fix-commit diffs from this CVE's patches. Citations validated against bundle.

References

7

News mentions

0

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