CVE-2025-27369 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting IBM OpenPages with Watson versions 8.3 and 9.0. The vulnerability stems from insufficient security controls on certain REST endpoints used for the administration of the OpenPages platform. Specifically, an authenticated user with legitimate access—but not necessarily administrative privileges—can exploit these endpoints to retrieve sensitive system configuration details and internal state information. This exposure falls under CWE-497, which concerns the exposure of sensitive system information to an unauthorized control sphere. The vulnerability does not allow modification or disruption of system operations but leaks information that is intended exclusively for system administrators. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 4.3, reflecting a network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), requiring privileges (PR:L), no user interaction (UI:N), unchanged scope (S:U), with confidentiality impact rated as low (C:L), and no impact on integrity or availability (I:N/A:N). No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet. The vulnerability could aid attackers in reconnaissance activities, potentially facilitating further targeted attacks by revealing configuration details that might otherwise be hidden from non-administrative users.

For European organizations using IBM OpenPages with Watson, this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized disclosure of sensitive system information, which may include configuration settings, internal states, or other administrative data. Although the direct impact on system integrity and availability is absent, the leakage of such information can assist attackers in crafting more effective attacks, such as privilege escalation, lateral movement, or targeted exploitation of other vulnerabilities. Organizations in regulated sectors like finance, healthcare, and critical infrastructure—where OpenPages is often deployed for governance, risk, and compliance management—may face increased risk of compliance violations or data breaches if attackers leverage this information. The exposure of internal system details could also undermine trust in risk management processes and potentially lead to reputational damage. Given that the vulnerability requires authenticated access, the risk is somewhat mitigated by existing access controls, but insider threats or compromised user credentials could still be exploited to gain this information.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should first ensure strict access control policies are enforced, limiting authenticated user privileges to the minimum necessary. Segmentation of administrative functions and monitoring of REST API usage can help detect anomalous access patterns. Organizations should implement robust authentication mechanisms, including multi-factor authentication (MFA), to reduce the risk of credential compromise. Until an official patch is released by IBM, administrators can consider disabling or restricting access to the vulnerable REST endpoints if feasible, or applying web application firewalls (WAFs) with rules designed to detect and block suspicious API calls. Regular auditing of user privileges and logs related to OpenPages administration should be conducted to identify potential misuse. Additionally, organizations should stay informed about IBM’s security advisories for updates or patches addressing this vulnerability and apply them promptly once available.