EXPLAINED : WHAT IS PHP ? WHY GOVT WEBSITES WENT DARK ? INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY ISSUED AS AI EXPOSES SERIOUS CYBER GLITCH

What happened: Governments and companies worldwide took websites offline on Thursday to protect against hacking after AI uncovered critical flaws in the PHP programming language, which triggered international advisories. Key numbers: PHP runs approximately 70 to 75% of all websites globally. Why it matters: Wiz said AI removed the barrier that made manual study of such failures hard to scale, and the leak fuelled fears hackers could exploit the flaws at massive scale. Experts warn smaller sites with limited technical resources could face greater risk in coming weeks.

Governments and companies worldwide took websites offline on Thursday to protect against hacking after AI uncovered critical flaws in the PHP programming language, which triggered international advisories.

Wiz said AI removed the barrier that made manual study of such failures hard to scale, and the leak fuelled fears hackers could exploit the flaws at massive scale. Experts warn smaller sites with limited technical resources could face greater risk in coming weeks.