CVE-2026-40296
MEDIUMDescription
PhpSpreadsheet is a pure PHP library for reading and writing spreadsheet files. The HTML writer skips htmlspecialchars escaping when a cell's formatted value differs from the original value. When a cell has a custom number format containing the text placeholder @ along with any additional literal characters (for example ". @", "@ ", or "x@"), the formatter replaces @ with the cell value and adds the extra characters, causing the formatted value to differ from the original and bypassing HTML escaping entirely. An attacker who can control the cell value and number format of an uploaded spreadsheet that is later converted to HTML and displayed to other users can achieve stored cross-site scripting. This issue is fixed in versions 5.7.0, 3.10.5, 2.4.5, 2.1.16, and 1.30.4.
How to fix
Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.
CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Exploit Intelligence
Low risk: more likely to be exploited than 13% of all known CVEs.
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-79 (Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)) vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2020-11022 | Medium | 6.9 | 99% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2019-3929 | Critical | 9.8 | 99% | KEV | Fix |
| CVE-2020-9496 | Medium | 6.1 | 99% | - | - |
| CVE-2023-28341 | Medium | 6.1 | 99% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2018-12998 | Medium | 6.1 | 98% | - | - |
| CVE-2025-4123 | High | 7.6 | 98% | - | Fix |
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Markdown
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Start freeThis product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-05-11.