CVE-2025-13980 is a vulnerability classified under CWE-288 (Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel) affecting Drupal's CKEditor 5 Premium Features. This flaw allows attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms by exploiting alternate paths or channels within the CKEditor 5 Premium Features component. The affected versions include all releases from 0.0.0 up to but not including 1.2.10, 1.3.0 up to 1.3.6, 1.4.0 up to 1.4.3, 1.5.0 up to 1.5.1, and 1.6.0 up to 1.6.4. The vulnerability does not require any privileges or user interaction, making it remotely exploitable over the network (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N). The CVSS v3.1 base score is 5.3, indicating medium severity, primarily impacting confidentiality (C:L) without affecting integrity or availability. The flaw enables unauthorized users to access functionality that should be restricted, potentially exposing sensitive content or administrative features. No public exploits are known at this time, but the vulnerability's nature suggests that exploitation could lead to unauthorized content access or manipulation of content editing workflows. The issue is particularly relevant for Drupal sites leveraging CKEditor 5 Premium Features, a widely used rich text editor component integrated into Drupal CMS for enhanced content editing capabilities. Since Drupal is popular among European public sector and enterprise organizations, the vulnerability poses a tangible risk to these entities if unpatched.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2025-13980 lies in unauthorized access to content editing features within Drupal-powered websites using CKEditor 5 Premium Features. This could lead to exposure of sensitive or confidential information, unauthorized content modifications, or misuse of administrative functionalities. Public sector websites, educational institutions, and enterprises relying on Drupal for content management are at risk of data confidentiality breaches. Although the vulnerability does not directly affect system integrity or availability, unauthorized access can undermine trust, cause reputational damage, and potentially facilitate further attacks if combined with other vulnerabilities. The ease of exploitation without authentication or user interaction increases the risk of automated attacks or scanning by threat actors. Given Drupal's significant adoption in Europe, especially in countries with strong digital government initiatives, the impact could be widespread if not addressed promptly.

1. Immediately upgrade CKEditor 5 Premium Features to the latest patched versions beyond 1.2.10, 1.3.6, 1.4.3, 1.5.1, or 1.6.4 depending on the installed version. 2. Restrict access to CKEditor 5 Premium Features to trusted users and networks, employing network segmentation and access control lists where feasible. 3. Implement web application firewalls (WAF) with custom rules to detect and block suspicious requests targeting CKEditor endpoints. 4. Monitor Drupal logs and web server access logs for unusual or unauthorized access attempts to CKEditor features. 5. Conduct regular vulnerability scans and penetration tests focusing on Drupal CMS and its components. 6. Educate site administrators about the risks of using outdated CKEditor versions and enforce patch management policies. 7. Consider disabling premium features if not essential until patches are applied. 8. Employ multi-factor authentication (MFA) for administrative access to Drupal sites to reduce risk from chained attacks.