CVE-2015-3998: Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in phpwhois 4.2.5, as used in the adsense-click-fraud-monitoring plug

Routine

MEDIUM 6.1DOWNGRADEDOWNGRADE

CVE-2015-3998 is a medium-severity flaw (CVSS 6.1) affecting adsense-click-fraud-monitoring, phpwhois. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in phpwhois 4.2.5, as used in the adsense-click-fraud-monitoring plugin 1.7.5 for WordPress, allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the query parameter to whois.php.

Why this priority

No elevated risk signals yet

No fix is published yet: follow the downgrade or mitigation steps.

Risk facts

CVSS score	6.1 (Medium)
Attack vector	Network (remote)
Attack complexity	Low
Privileges needed	None
User interaction	Required
EPSS exploit chance	1.1% (top 34%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-79
Published	2017-05-17
Last modified	2026-06-17

Publisher (CNA): MITRE · Vendor: clickfraud-monitoring · phpwhois project

Last updated 2026-06-17 · Sources: CVE Program, NVD, CISA KEV, EPSS and vendor advisories · How we score

Am I affected?

Timeline

2017-05-17 14:29 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-17 00:26 UTCUpdated Record last modified

clickfraud-monitoring adsense-click-fraud-monitoring DOWNGRADE

Affected: 1.7.5

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 1.7.5

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy adsense-click-fraud-monitoring || rpm -q adsense-click-fraud-monitoring || adsense-click-fraud-monitoring --version

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE to a release before 1.7.5 (Debian / Ubuntu)

apt-cache madison adsense-click-fraud-monitoring sudo apt install adsense-click-fraud-monitoring=<VERSION_BEFORE_1.7.5> sudo apt-mark hold adsense-click-fraud-monitoring

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

dnf --showduplicates list adsense-click-fraud-monitoring sudo dnf downgrade adsense-click-fraud-monitoring-<VERSION_BEFORE_1.7.5> sudo dnf versionlock add adsense-click-fraud-monitoring

Downgrade risk

Downgrading can break dependent software and may reopen older bugs. Read the distro advisory first and test on a non-production host.

After downgrade

Restart the service, and keep the package held until a fixed release ships.

phpwhois project phpwhois DOWNGRADE

Affected: 4.2.5

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 4.2.5

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy phpwhois || rpm -q phpwhois || phpwhois --version

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE to a release before 4.2.5 (Debian / Ubuntu)

apt-cache madison phpwhois sudo apt install phpwhois=<VERSION_BEFORE_4.2.5> sudo apt-mark hold phpwhois

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

dnf --showduplicates list phpwhois sudo dnf downgrade phpwhois-<VERSION_BEFORE_4.2.5> sudo dnf versionlock add phpwhois

Downgrade risk

Downgrading can break dependent software and may reopen older bugs. Read the distro advisory first and test on a non-production host.

After downgrade

Restart the service, and keep the package held until a fixed release ships.

Verify at the official source NVD · CVE Program · Report a problem with this page
Scores and fixes here are computed automatically from those and other public sources. Confirm with the vendor advisory before changing production systems.

Quick answers

How do I fix CVE-2015-3998?

adsense-click-fraud-monitoring: downgrade or apply the listed mitigation; phpwhois: downgrade or apply the listed mitigation. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2015-3998 being exploited?

CVE-2015-3998 is not on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list at the time of the last update. Check again, as this can change.

What does CVE-2015-3998 affect?

CVE-2015-3998 affects adsense-click-fraud-monitoring, phpwhois. Severity is medium (CVSS 6.1). Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in phpwhois 4.2.5, as used in the adsense-click-fraud-monitoring plugin 1.7.5 for WordPress, allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the query parameter to whois.php.

How urgent is CVE-2015-3998?

Priority 38/100. No elevated risk signals yet.

Software pages

WordPress vulnerabilities · PHP vulnerabilities

References

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