CVE-2025-2301 is an authorization bypass vulnerability identified in the Akbim Software Online Exam Registration system, specifically affecting versions prior to 14.03.2025. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-639, which relates to authorization bypass through user-controlled keys or trusted identifiers. In this context, the flaw allows an attacker with certain privileges (as indicated by the CVSS vector requiring high privileges) to exploit the system's trust in user-controlled keys or tokens to bypass authorization controls. This means that an attacker who already has some level of authenticated access could manipulate or supply crafted keys or identifiers to gain unauthorized access to resources or functionalities that should be restricted. The vulnerability does not require user interaction but does require the attacker to have high privileges, which suggests it is not exploitable by unauthenticated users or low-privilege accounts. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 4.4 (medium severity), with a vector indicating network attack vector (AV:N), high attack complexity (AC:H), privileges required (PR:H), no user interaction (UI:N), unchanged scope (S:U), high impact on confidentiality (C:H), but no impact on integrity (I:N) or availability (A:N). This implies that the primary risk is unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information rather than modification or disruption of services. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches are linked yet, indicating that mitigation may rely on vendor updates or configuration changes once available. The vulnerability affects the Online Exam Registration product, which is likely used by educational institutions or certification bodies to manage exam registrations online.

For European organizations, especially educational institutions, certification authorities, and examination boards using Akbim Software's Online Exam Registration system, this vulnerability poses a risk of unauthorized access to sensitive candidate data or exam registration details. The confidentiality breach could lead to exposure of personal identifiable information (PII), exam schedules, or registration statuses, potentially undermining the integrity of exam processes and privacy compliance obligations under GDPR. Although the vulnerability does not allow modification or denial of service, unauthorized data disclosure can have reputational and regulatory consequences. Given the requirement for high privileges to exploit, the threat is more relevant to insider threats or attackers who have already compromised privileged accounts within the system. This elevates the importance of internal access controls and monitoring. The impact is particularly significant in countries with large-scale online exam deployments or where Akbim Software has a strong market presence. Additionally, the breach of exam registration data could be leveraged for fraudulent exam participation or cheating, affecting the credibility of certification processes.

1. Immediate mitigation should focus on restricting and auditing high-privilege accounts within the Online Exam Registration system to minimize the risk of insider exploitation. 2. Implement strict validation and sanitization of all user-controlled keys or identifiers used in authorization checks to prevent manipulation. 3. Employ multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all privileged users to reduce the risk of credential compromise. 4. Monitor logs for unusual access patterns or attempts to use unauthorized keys, enabling early detection of exploitation attempts. 5. Coordinate with Akbim Software to obtain and apply official patches or updates addressing this vulnerability as soon as they become available. 6. Conduct a thorough review of authorization logic in the affected system to ensure that trusted identifiers cannot be controlled or influenced by users. 7. Consider network segmentation and least privilege principles to limit the exposure of the Online Exam Registration system to only necessary personnel and systems. 8. Train administrators and users on the risks of privilege misuse and the importance of safeguarding credentials and access tokens.