CVE-2021-25991 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting the Ifme software developed by ifmeorg, specifically versions from v5.0.0 up to v7.32. The vulnerability arises from improper access control (CWE-284) within the application’s administrative functions. It allows administrators to inadvertently ban themselves, which results in their own deactivation and a complete loss of administrative access to the Ifme account. This flaw is triggered when an admin performs an action that should be restricted or validated more strictly, but due to insufficient access control checks, the system permits the admin to self-ban. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity directly but severely affects availability by locking out all administrative users, potentially leading to a denial of service for administrative functions. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 5.7 (medium), with the vector indicating network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), requiring privileges (PR:L), user interaction (UI:R), unchanged scope (S:U), no confidentiality or integrity impact (C:N/I:N), and high availability impact (A:H). There are no known exploits in the wild, and no patches are currently linked, suggesting organizations may still be vulnerable if they have not upgraded or implemented workarounds. The vulnerability is particularly critical in environments where Ifme is used for essential administrative or identity management tasks, as losing admin access could halt critical operations or require complex recovery procedures.

For European organizations using Ifme, this vulnerability poses a significant operational risk. The primary impact is the potential loss of administrative control, which can disrupt management of user accounts, permissions, and other critical administrative functions. This could lead to prolonged downtime or inability to respond to other security incidents effectively. While confidentiality and integrity are not directly compromised, the availability impact can cascade into broader operational disruptions, especially in sectors relying on Ifme for identity or access management. Organizations in regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, or government may face compliance challenges if administrative access is lost and cannot be restored promptly. Additionally, the requirement for user interaction and privileges means insider threats or accidental misuse by administrators could trigger the vulnerability, increasing risk in environments with less stringent operational controls. The lack of known exploits reduces immediate threat but does not eliminate risk, especially as attackers could develop exploits targeting this flaw to cause denial of service or administrative lockout.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should prioritize upgrading Ifme to versions beyond v7.32 where the issue is presumably fixed. In absence of an official patch, organizations should implement strict operational controls to prevent administrators from performing self-ban actions, including role-based access controls that limit who can execute banning functions. Logging and alerting should be enhanced to detect any attempts by admins to ban themselves or unusual administrative actions. Organizations should also maintain out-of-band administrative recovery mechanisms, such as emergency admin accounts or alternative access paths, to regain control if lockout occurs. Regular training and awareness for administrators about this specific risk can reduce accidental triggering. Additionally, network segmentation and limiting administrative access to trusted hosts can reduce exposure. Monitoring for unusual user interaction patterns and privilege escalations can help detect attempts to exploit this vulnerability. Finally, organizations should engage with the vendor for updates and consider applying custom patches or workarounds if available.