CVE-2025-36003 is a high-severity vulnerability identified in IBM Security Verify Governance Identity Manager version 10.0.2. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-209, which pertains to the generation of error messages containing sensitive information. Specifically, this flaw allows a remote attacker to obtain sensitive information from the system because the application returns detailed technical error messages when certain errors occur. These detailed error messages can inadvertently disclose critical internal information such as system configurations, software versions, database queries, or other diagnostic data. Such information disclosure can be leveraged by attackers to craft more targeted and effective follow-up attacks, including privilege escalation, injection attacks, or unauthorized access attempts. The vulnerability is exploitable remotely without requiring authentication or user interaction, as indicated by the CVSS vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N). The CVSS base score of 7.5 reflects the high impact on confidentiality, with no impact on integrity or availability. Although no known exploits are currently reported in the wild, the potential for exploitation remains significant given the nature of the information disclosed and the critical role of the affected product in identity governance and access management. IBM Security Verify Governance Identity Manager is a critical enterprise solution used to manage user identities, roles, and access rights, making the confidentiality of its internal operations paramount to organizational security.

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability can be substantial. Identity governance solutions like IBM Security Verify Governance Identity Manager are central to managing user access and ensuring compliance with regulatory frameworks such as GDPR. Disclosure of sensitive internal information could enable attackers to bypass security controls, leading to unauthorized access to sensitive personal data or critical business systems. This could result in data breaches, regulatory penalties, reputational damage, and operational disruptions. Given the high confidentiality impact, attackers could map the internal environment and identify further vulnerabilities or misconfigurations. The absence of required authentication or user interaction lowers the barrier for exploitation, increasing risk. Organizations relying on this IBM product for identity and access management are at risk of targeted reconnaissance and subsequent attacks that could compromise the integrity of their identity governance processes, potentially affecting a wide range of connected systems and services.

To mitigate this vulnerability effectively, European organizations should: 1) Immediately upgrade IBM Security Verify Governance Identity Manager to a patched version once IBM releases it, as no patch links are currently available. 2) In the interim, configure the application to suppress detailed error messages in production environments by disabling verbose error reporting or enabling generic error handling to prevent leakage of sensitive information. 3) Implement robust network-level controls such as web application firewalls (WAFs) to detect and block suspicious requests that may trigger error conditions. 4) Conduct thorough security audits and penetration testing focused on error handling and information disclosure to identify and remediate similar issues. 5) Monitor logs and alerts for unusual access patterns or error message requests that could indicate exploitation attempts. 6) Enforce strict access controls and segmentation around the identity governance infrastructure to limit exposure. 7) Educate development and operations teams about secure error handling practices to prevent recurrence. These steps go beyond generic advice by focusing on immediate configuration changes, proactive detection, and organizational processes tailored to the specific nature of this vulnerability.