CVE-2025-25032 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting multiple versions of IBM Cognos Analytics, specifically versions 11.2.0 through 11.2.4 and 12.0.0 through 12.0.4. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-770, which pertains to the allocation of resources without limits or throttling. In this case, an authenticated user can send a specially crafted request to the IBM Cognos Analytics server that causes excessive memory consumption, ultimately leading to a denial of service (DoS) condition. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity but severely affects availability by exhausting memory resources on the affected system. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 7.5, indicating a high severity level. The attack vector is network-based (AV:N), requires no privileges (PR:N), and no user interaction (UI:N), making it relatively easy to exploit remotely once authentication is achieved. The scope is unchanged (S:U), meaning the impact is limited to the vulnerable component itself. Although no known exploits are currently reported in the wild, the vulnerability poses a significant risk due to the potential for service disruption in environments relying on IBM Cognos Analytics for business intelligence and reporting. The lack of patch links suggests that fixes may not yet be publicly available or are pending release, emphasizing the need for immediate mitigation strategies.

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability can be substantial, especially for enterprises and public sector entities that depend heavily on IBM Cognos Analytics for data analysis, reporting, and decision-making processes. A successful exploitation could lead to service outages, disrupting business operations and delaying critical reporting functions. This could affect financial institutions, healthcare providers, government agencies, and large corporations that utilize Cognos Analytics for compliance reporting and operational intelligence. The denial of service could also impact customer-facing services if analytics dashboards are integrated into client portals. Additionally, the requirement for authentication means that insider threats or compromised credentials could be leveraged to exploit this vulnerability, increasing the risk profile. Given the high availability requirements in sectors such as finance and healthcare, downtime caused by this vulnerability could lead to regulatory scrutiny and financial losses. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently provides a window for proactive defense, but the ease of exploitation once authenticated warrants urgent attention.

1. Restrict access to IBM Cognos Analytics to trusted users only and enforce strong authentication mechanisms, including multi-factor authentication (MFA), to reduce the risk of credential compromise. 2. Implement strict network segmentation and firewall rules to limit exposure of the Cognos Analytics server to only necessary internal networks and trusted IP addresses. 3. Monitor system resource usage closely with automated alerts for unusual memory consumption patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts. 4. Apply rate limiting or request throttling at the application or web server level to prevent excessive resource allocation from individual users. 5. Regularly review and audit user privileges to ensure that only necessary users have access to the system, minimizing the attack surface. 6. Stay informed on IBM’s security advisories and apply patches or updates as soon as they become available. 7. Consider deploying Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with custom rules to detect and block suspicious request patterns targeting resource exhaustion. 8. Conduct internal penetration testing and vulnerability assessments focusing on authentication and resource management controls within Cognos Analytics environments.