CVE-2006-2220
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedphpBB 2.0.20 does not properly verify user-specified input variables used as limits to SQL queries, which allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive information via a negative LIMIT specification, as demonstrated by the start parameter to memberlist.php, which reveals the SQL query in the resulting error message.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidencephpBB 2.0.20 fails to validate the 'start' parameter in memberlist.php before using it in SQL LIMIT clauses. By supplying a negative value, attackers trigger SQL errors that expose the full query structure, enabling further reconnaissance for more targeted attacks.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 2.0.20CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm phpBB installation versionCheck the version.php file in your phpBB root directory for the variable $version or look in the admin control panel under System tab for version informationAffected if Installed version is phpBB 2.0.20 specifically
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Verify memberlist.php exists and is web-accessibleAccess the memberlist.php file via HTTP request to your phpBB installation path (e.g., http://yourforum/memberlist.php)Affected if The file exists and returns a valid page response
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Check if input validation exists on the start parameterExamine the memberlist.php source code around the LIMIT clause usage - look for validation of the 'start' parameter before it is used in SQL queriesAffected if No validation or weak validation exists on the 'start' parameter before SQL usage
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Inspect SQL error handling configurationCheck the phpBB configuration for database error display settings in config.php or the admin panel under General Server ConfigurationAffected if Database errors are set to display detailed messages rather than generic errors
You are affected if phpBB 2.0.20 is installed, memberlist.php is accessible, and the 'start' parameter lacks proper input validation allowing negative values to trigger SQL error disclosure.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataImplement strict input validation requiring non-negative integers for LIMIT parameters and configure error handling to display generic messages rather than raw SQL errors. Consider upgrading to a patched version if available.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2006-2220 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2006-2220 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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