PHP Foundation's single full-time staffer highlights funding crisis after critical flaws exposed

The PHP Foundation operates with only one full-time staff member and 14 part-time contractors, leaving the programming language that underpins up to 70% of global websites critically under-funded, according to Executive Director Elizabeth Barron. Two serious PHP flaws discovered this week triggered a worldwide effort to patch systems, with Cloudflare reporting millions of hacking attempts, though Barron said there is no evidence of exploitation before patches were issued. The foundation coordinates fixes with outside partners including OpenAI and cybersecurity firms Wiz and Calif. Artificial intelligence helped researchers identify the decade-old vulnerabilities but has also doubled proposed code changes without a corresponding increase in contributors, straining the volunteer-led organization. Barron emphasized that heavy reliance on PHP by companies and governments makes its funding situation particularly concerning.