Government websites in Europe and elsewhere went offline after the disclosure of critical vulnerabilities in a widely used programming language sent website operators around the world scrambling to protect their systems.

A major security flaw in PHP, used by around 70 per cent of websites, forced organisations worldwide to shut down sites as hackers could take control of vulnerable servers without a password.

A major security flaw in PHP, used by around 70 per cent of websites, forced organisations worldwide to shut down sites as hackers could take control of vulnerable servers without a password.

A major security flaw in PHP, used by around 70 per cent of websites, forced organisations worldwide to shut down sites as hackers could take control of vulnerable servers without a password.

A major security flaw in PHP, used by around 70 per cent of websites, forced organisations worldwide to shut down sites as hackers could take control of vulnerable servers without a password.

A major security flaw in PHP, used by around 70 per cent of websites, forced organisations worldwide to shut down sites as hackers could take control of vulnerable servers without a password.

A major security flaw in PHP, used by around 70 per cent of websites, forced organisations worldwide to shut down sites as hackers could take control of vulnerable servers without a password.