CVE-2025-31987 is a medium-severity vulnerability identified in HCL Software's Connections Docs product, specifically version 2.0.2. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-405, which relates to asymmetric resource consumption. This means that the software mishandles validation of certain uploaded documents, leading to excessive consumption of system resources such as CPU, memory, or disk I/O. The flaw arises during the processing of uploaded documents, where the validation logic fails to efficiently handle or properly limit resource usage. An attacker can exploit this by uploading specially crafted documents that trigger the resource exhaustion condition, resulting in a denial of service (DoS) state. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 4.8, reflecting a medium severity level. The vector string (AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H) indicates that the attack can be performed remotely over the network but requires low privileges and user interaction, with high attack complexity. The impact is limited to availability, with no confidentiality or integrity loss. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches have been published yet. The vulnerability affects only version 2.0.2 of Connections Docs, a collaborative document management tool used within enterprise environments to facilitate document sharing and editing. The asymmetric resource consumption can degrade system performance or cause service outages, disrupting business operations dependent on this platform.

For European organizations using HCL Connections Docs 2.0.2, this vulnerability poses a risk of denial of service through resource exhaustion. Such an outage could interrupt collaboration workflows, delay document processing, and reduce productivity. Organizations in sectors with high reliance on continuous document collaboration—such as finance, legal, government, and large enterprises—may experience operational disruptions. Although the vulnerability does not compromise data confidentiality or integrity, the availability impact can affect business continuity and service level agreements. Additionally, repeated or sustained exploitation attempts could strain IT resources and increase operational costs. Since the attack requires user interaction (uploading a crafted document) and low privileges, insider threats or social engineering could facilitate exploitation. The medium severity rating suggests that while the threat is not critical, it should be addressed promptly to avoid potential service degradation or denial of service incidents.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should: 1) Restrict document upload permissions to trusted users only and implement strict access controls to minimize exposure. 2) Employ network-level filtering and monitoring to detect and block anomalous upload patterns or unusually large or complex documents. 3) Implement rate limiting on document uploads to prevent rapid or bulk submission of files that could trigger resource exhaustion. 4) Monitor system resource usage closely on servers running Connections Docs to identify early signs of resource strain. 5) Educate users about the risks of uploading untrusted or suspicious documents and enforce policies for document validation before upload. 6) Coordinate with HCL Software for timely updates and patches once available, and plan for rapid deployment. 7) Consider deploying application-layer firewalls or sandboxing mechanisms to analyze uploaded documents safely before processing. These measures go beyond generic advice by focusing on operational controls, user behavior, and proactive monitoring tailored to the nature of the vulnerability.