CVE-2025-2251 is a vulnerability identified in Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7, specifically within the Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) remote invocation mechanism. The root cause is unsafe deserialization of untrusted data handled by the JBoss Marshalling framework. Deserialization vulnerabilities occur when untrusted input is deserialized into objects without proper validation, enabling attackers to craft malicious serialized objects that trigger unintended behavior. In this case, an attacker with network access can send a specially crafted serialized payload to the EJB remote invocation interface, which processes it without authentication. This leads to remote code execution (RCE) on the affected server, allowing the attacker to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the JBoss server process. The CVSS 3.1 score is 6.2 (medium), reflecting network attack vector, high attack complexity, required privileges, no user interaction, and impacts on confidentiality (low), integrity (high), and availability (high). Although no known exploits are currently reported in the wild, the vulnerability poses a significant risk due to the critical nature of RCE in enterprise middleware. JBoss EAP is widely used in enterprise environments for Java application hosting, making this vulnerability relevant for organizations relying on this platform. The lack of authentication requirement for exploitation increases risk, but the need for privileges and high attack complexity somewhat limits immediate exploitation. The vulnerability was published on April 7, 2025, and is actively tracked by Red Hat and CISA.

For European organizations, this vulnerability could lead to severe consequences including unauthorized remote code execution on critical middleware servers, potentially compromising sensitive business applications and data. The integrity and availability of enterprise Java applications hosted on JBoss EAP 7 could be severely impacted, leading to service disruption and data manipulation. Confidentiality impact is considered low but cannot be ignored as RCE could facilitate further lateral movement and data exfiltration. Organizations in sectors such as finance, manufacturing, government, and telecommunications that rely heavily on JBoss EAP for their Java application infrastructure are at heightened risk. The exploitation could enable attackers to deploy malware, ransomware, or conduct espionage activities. Given the medium severity and complexity, targeted attacks by skilled adversaries are more likely than widespread automated exploitation. The absence of authentication requirement means that exposed JBoss EAP instances accessible over the network are particularly vulnerable, emphasizing the need for immediate mitigation in exposed environments.

1. Apply official patches from Red Hat as soon as they become available to address the deserialization flaw in JBoss Marshalling. 2. Restrict network access to the EJB remote invocation interface by implementing strict firewall rules and network segmentation, limiting exposure to trusted hosts only. 3. Employ runtime application self-protection (RASP) or Web Application Firewalls (WAF) capable of detecting and blocking malicious serialized payloads targeting JBoss EAP. 4. Monitor network traffic and application logs for unusual serialized object deserialization attempts or anomalies in EJB invocation patterns. 5. Conduct regular security assessments and penetration testing focusing on deserialization vulnerabilities within Java middleware components. 6. Harden the JBoss EAP environment by disabling unused services and interfaces, and enforce the principle of least privilege for the JBoss server process. 7. Educate development and operations teams about secure deserialization practices and the risks of accepting untrusted serialized data. 8. Consider deploying application-layer encryption or signing of serialized objects to ensure integrity and authenticity where feasible.