Implement a whitelist for the id parameter:
if (!ctype_digit($_GET['id']))
die("Invalid request.");
If a developer writes code like this:
$id = $_GET['id'];
$query = "SELECT * FROM products WHERE id = $id";
An attacker can modify the URL from:
index.php?id=5 to index.php?id=5 UNION SELECT username, password FROM admins inurl indexphpid upd
The upd component might trigger a different code path—perhaps an UPDATE SQL statement instead of a SELECT. If an attacker finds index.php?id=upd, they might test:
index.php?id=upd' OR '1'='1 — which could modify database records without authorization.
If you're a:
Warning: Using Google Dorks to access, modify, or exfiltrate data from websites you do not own is illegal under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) in the US and similar laws globally. The following section is for educational purposes and authorized penetration testing only.
If you are a system administrator or a white-hat hacker with written permission, here is how to use inurl:index.php?id= upd to audit your own web property. Implement a whitelist for the id parameter:
if (
If upd is an internal action (e.g., updating a cart), use POST requests instead of GET. URLs with ?id=upd should never exist; use session variables or hidden form fields.
Do not use predictable parameter names like id, upd, cat, or view. Use hashed or random names:
index.php?x7f9q=123
This makes dorking useless because attackers cannot guess the parameter. If a developer writes code like this: $id
index.php is the default entry point for countless PHP-based websites, including those built on legacy custom code, early WordPress versions, Joomla, and Drupal. The ?id= portion represents a query string parameter. In dynamic web applications, index.php?id=123 typically tells the server: “Retrieve the database record with the ID number 123 and display it on this page.”