CVE-2025-14262 is a vulnerability identified in KNIME Business Hub before version 1.17.0, classified under CWE-708 (Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource). The flaw arises from a wrong permission check that allows an authenticated user with read or access permissions on jobs to save those jobs as if they were the job owner. This incorrect ownership assignment occurs when saving jobs into the catalog service, enabling the attacker to write into spaces where they do not have explicit write permissions. The vulnerability does not require elevated privileges beyond authenticated access, nor does it require user interaction, making it easier to exploit within an organization. The impact primarily concerns data integrity and confidentiality, as unauthorized users can modify job ownership and potentially manipulate job data or metadata. There is no workaround available, emphasizing the need for patching. The CVSS 4.0 base score is 5.3 (medium severity), reflecting network attack vector, low attack complexity, no privileges required beyond authentication, and limited impact on confidentiality and integrity. No known exploits have been reported in the wild as of the publication date. This vulnerability could be leveraged to bypass internal access controls and escalate privileges within the KNIME Business Hub environment, potentially affecting workflows and data governance.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a moderate risk to the integrity and confidentiality of data managed within KNIME Business Hub environments. Organizations relying on KNIME for data analytics, business intelligence, or research workflows could face unauthorized modification of job data or ownership, leading to potential data corruption, loss of auditability, and trust issues in data provenance. This could disrupt critical business processes or research outcomes, especially in sectors like finance, healthcare, and scientific research where data integrity is paramount. Although availability is not directly impacted, the unauthorized changes could necessitate incident response and remediation efforts, causing operational delays. The requirement for authentication limits exploitation to insiders or compromised accounts, but the ease of exploitation and lack of user interaction make it a significant concern in environments with multiple users and shared resources. The absence of a workaround increases urgency for patching and access control reviews.

The primary mitigation is to upgrade KNIME Business Hub to version 1.17.0 or later, where the permission check flaw has been corrected. Until the patch is applied, organizations should conduct a thorough review of user permissions and job access controls to minimize the number of users with access to sensitive jobs. Implement strict authentication and session management policies to reduce the risk of account compromise. Monitor job save activities and audit logs for unusual patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Consider segmenting the environment to limit the impact of unauthorized writes. Educate users about the importance of safeguarding credentials and reporting suspicious activity. Since no workaround exists, rapid patch deployment combined with enhanced monitoring and access restriction is critical to mitigate risk.