CVE-2026-4223 is an SQL injection flaw in itsourcecode Payroll Management System 1.0, scored CVSS 7.3 (high). The ID argument of /manage_employee.php reaches a database query unchecked. I found no fixed release, so keep the app off the internet and fix the query or retire the app.
What's affected
The NVD record names Payroll Management System 1.0 from itsourcecode, and the vulnerable file is /manage_employee.php. The manipulated argument is ID.
No fixed version is listed. The project is a free sample PHP application, so there may be no maintainer to ship a patch. The reporter's issue says the flaw can be reached without logging in.
How to check if you're exposed
- Find out whether you run this application. Search your web roots for the file.
find /var/www -name manage_employee.php
- Open the file and look for where the
idvalue is placed into a query. If it is joined into the SQL string, you are exposed. - Check whether the application is reachable from the internet or from untrusted networks.
What to do now
- Take the application off the public internet, or put it behind a VPN or an allow list.
- Change the query to use a prepared statement with a bound parameter.
- Run the application's database account with the least access it needs, so a bad query cannot reach other data.
- Because it holds payroll records, plan to replace it with a maintained product.
- If you handle personal data in it, check whether you have a duty to review access logs.
Why it matters
The record classes this as CWE-74 and CWE-89. When user input is joined into SQL text, the database cannot tell data from commands. The reporter's issue says this can allow unauthorized database access, data leakage and tampering.
Payroll data is among the most sensitive a company holds. The KEV flag is false. The record says the exploit is public, and I found no report of exploitation in the wild.
Quick check
Is there a patch for CVE-2026-4223?
I could not find one in the record or the reporter issue. Fix the query yourself with a prepared statement, or replace the application.
Sources
Last reviewed: 19 October 2026.
