Hi,

Thank you for the report.

We have verified that the default.php file included with the official Helix Ultimate package is legitimate and does not contain any malicious code. Based on our investigation, this appears to be a false positive from Imunify360 caused by its detection signatures.

As a temporary workaround, please exclude this file from Imunify360 (or stop scanning it) to prevent it from being quarantined or modified. We are also reaching out to the Imunify team to clarify the detection and will provide an update as soon as we have more information.

Thank you for your understanding.

I have whitelisted the file for now.

The last weeks most of us all have stepped from from designers to website security :) Actually not a bad thing..

Let's hope the next wave of zero days doesn't involve JS..

We hope so.

Thanks

The next wave of zero‑day attacks will absolutely include Joomla, Helix, SP Page Builder, and many other widely used Joomla components. The reason is simple: Joomla has fallen from one of the strongest CMS platforms to the 6th or 7th place, largely because of its complicated upgrade process — from the core CMS all the way down to templates, components, and plugins.

We’ve already seen what happens when something breaks, like the recent Helix 3 issues. Nothing is compatible with anything. The template collapses, dozens of errors appear during upgrades, you update SP Page Builder and the entire website layout breaks, you update Joomla and suddenly another extension stops working. It’s endless.

People didn’t stay on Joomla 3 out of comfort or laziness. They stayed because upgrading to Joomla 4 requires new components, new plugins, a new template, a new SP Page Builder version — essentially, you have to charge the client as if you’re building a brand‑new website. And same story with Joomla 5 which again is not a simple one‑click upgrade but a chain of changes, fixes, and compatibility adjustments. Then Joomla 6 the same story. In just a few years we’ve gone from Joomla 3 to Joomla 6. Who can afford to pay hundreds of euros every few months for upgrades, especially for large and complex websites?

I maintain both Joomla and WordPress websites. WordPress updates automatically without breaking the homepage, menus, or layout. The same goes for plugins — they update smoothly. Try doing that in Joomla. Just the other day I updated Helix 3 from 3.1.1 to 3.1.2 and the homepage crashed instantly.

The point is: there are thousands of Joomla websites on the web that are outdated and unmaintained simply because maintenance is expensive. We are not careless — clients cannot or do not want to pay for constant upgrades. And how do you explain to a client that they must pay several hundred euros every few months just to keep their site updated?

Everyone else in the industry has spent years simplifying things, while the Joomla ecosystem kept demanding that a web designer also be a Linux server administrator, an Apache/PHP technician, and a cybersecurity specialist. When I talk to colleagues who work exclusively with WordPress, they have absolutely no idea what I’m talking about — nor do they understand the kind of stress I’m under when I need to upgrade something as simple as a page builder from version 6.1.1 to 6.6.2.

For them, an update is a non‑event. For us, it’s a potential disaster.

So yes, attacks on Joomla will continue, just like attacks on all its components, plugins, and frameworks. The ecosystem practically invites it.

Hi Copycat,

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. We understand your concerns, and we know that major CMS upgrades can be challenging, especially for large, long-running websites.

At JoomShaper, our goal is to make upgrades as smooth and reliable as possible. Whenever issues are reported, we investigate them, provide fixes, and continuously improve compatibility with the latest Joomla releases. We also recommend testing updates on a staging environment before applying them to a production website, particularly for complex sites with multiple third-party extensions.

Regarding Helix Framework and SP Page Builder, we are actively maintaining both products to ensure compatibility with supported Joomla versions. If you encounter any specific issue during an update, please open a support ticket with your Joomla version, Helix/SP Page Builder version, and any error details. Our team will be happy to investigate and help you resolve it.

We truly appreciate your feedback. It helps us identify areas where we can continue improving the upgrade experience for everyone.

Thank you for your continued support.

I don’t fully agree with this.

I’ve seen plenty of WordPress sites that haven’t been updated for years either. There are enough online tools to check that. Some of them were built by large web agencies, not freelancers. Outdated websites are not a Joomla-only problem.

Also, saying clients have to pay for maintenance doesn’t really support your argument. If every update turns into a major bill, either the maintenance agreements weren’t set up properly from the beginning, or you’re working with clients who don’t value maintaining their own business. A website is no different from a car—you maintain it when it needs maintenance. That’s as much a business issue as it is a technical one.

Joomla certainly had a difficult transition from J3 to J4, and some extensions made that much worse. But claiming that the ecosystem “invites” zero-days because upgrades can be difficult is a stretch. Security vulnerabilities and the ease of upgrading are related, but they’re not the same thing.

WordPress isn’t immune either. Plugin conflicts, abandoned themes, outdated page builders, and unsupported plugins are common there as well. The difference is that WordPress has a much larger ecosystem, so people tend to overlook those problems.

Hi Robert,

Thank you for sharing your perspective. We appreciate your balanced view.

You're right that keeping websites up to date is not a Joomla-specific challenge. Every CMS has its own maintenance and security considerations, and regular updates are an important part of keeping any website secure and stable.

We also agree that security vulnerabilities and the upgrade experience are related but not the same issue. Our team is committed to continuously improving both the reliability of our products and the overall update experience, while responding quickly whenever security issues are identified.

Thank you again for contributing to the discussion and for your continued support.

Best Regards,

Thanks for your patience.

The Imunify360 security team has resolved the false-positive issue. Please update your malware signatures and run a new scan. The file should no longer be flagged.

If you still encounter the detection after updating and rescanning, please let us know, and we'll investigate further.