CVE-2025-0217 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting BeyondTrust Privileged Remote Access (PRA) versions prior to 25.1. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-287, which pertains to improper authentication mechanisms. Specifically, this flaw allows a local authenticated attacker to bypass intended authentication controls and gain unauthorized access to sensitive session information. The vulnerability arises because an attacker with local authenticated access can view the connection details of a ShellJump session initiated via external tools. ShellJump is a feature within BeyondTrust PRA that facilitates privileged session access and management. By exploiting this vulnerability, an attacker can potentially access active or previously established remote sessions that they should not be authorized to view or control. The CVSS 4.0 base score is 7.3, indicating a high severity level. The vector string (AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H) reveals that the attack requires local access with low attack complexity, partial attack prerequisites, low privileges, and user interaction. The impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability is high, and the scope is high, meaning the vulnerability can affect resources beyond the initially compromised component. No known exploits are reported in the wild yet, and no patches are linked at the time of publication. The vulnerability was reserved in early 2025 and published in May 2025. This vulnerability is critical for environments relying on BeyondTrust PRA for privileged access management, as it undermines the core security guarantees of session isolation and access control.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-0217 can be significant, especially for those in sectors with stringent regulatory requirements such as finance, healthcare, government, and critical infrastructure. BeyondTrust PRA is widely used for managing privileged access to sensitive systems, and unauthorized access to ShellJump sessions could lead to exposure of confidential data, unauthorized command execution, and lateral movement within networks. This could result in data breaches, compliance violations (e.g., GDPR), operational disruptions, and reputational damage. The local authentication requirement limits remote exploitation but does not eliminate risk, as insider threats or compromised user accounts could leverage this vulnerability. Organizations with distributed workforces or those using shared administrative workstations are particularly at risk. The high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability means that attackers could manipulate or disrupt critical systems once they gain unauthorized session access. The absence of known exploits in the wild provides a window for proactive mitigation, but the vulnerability’s presence in a privileged access tool elevates its risk profile.

1. Immediate upgrade to BeyondTrust Privileged Remote Access version 25.1 or later once available, as this will contain the official patch addressing the vulnerability. 2. Until patching is possible, restrict local access to systems running BeyondTrust PRA to only trusted and verified personnel. Implement strict endpoint security controls, including application whitelisting and endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions, to detect and prevent unauthorized local activity. 3. Enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all users accessing systems hosting BeyondTrust PRA to reduce the risk of compromised credentials being used to exploit this vulnerability. 4. Monitor and audit privileged session activity closely, focusing on ShellJump session logs and connection details for any anomalous access patterns or unauthorized session views. 5. Segment networks to limit lateral movement opportunities from compromised local accounts. 6. Conduct user training to raise awareness about the risks of local credential compromise and the importance of safeguarding privileged access credentials. 7. Review and tighten local user permissions on PRA servers, removing unnecessary local accounts and applying the principle of least privilege. 8. Implement robust endpoint hardening and regularly update all software components to reduce the attack surface.