VulnerabilityPublished 29 Sep 2025

CVE-2025-41245: VMware Aria Operations · Insecure Default

Affects VMware Aria OperationsSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.9 Medium : upgrade to 8.19.0 when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

4.9Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.6% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 48% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 8.19.0

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: High: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide significant (e.g., administrative) control over the vulnerable component that could affect component-wide settings and files.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 29 Sep 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade VMware Aria Operations to 8.19.0.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
VMware VMware Aria Operations	Affected >=8.18.0 <8.19.0	Fixed in 8.19.0

AI-suggested

Immediately review and restrict user privileges within VMware Aria Operations to the minimum necessary, ensuring that non-administrative users have no access to credential storage or management functions.
Implement strict monitoring and logging of credential access and user activities within Aria Operations to detect anomalous behavior indicative of exploitation attempts.
Enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all users accessing Aria Operations to reduce the risk of credential misuse.
Segregate duties and apply role-based access control (RBAC) rigorously to limit exposure of sensitive information.
Prepare to apply vendor patches promptly once released; maintain communication with VMware for updates on patch availability.
Conduct regular security audits and penetration testing focused on access controls within Aria Operations environments.
Educate users about the importance of credential security and the risks of credential sharing or reuse.
Consider network segmentation to isolate Aria Operations management interfaces from broader network access, reducing attack surface.

Description

VMware Aria Operations contains an information disclosure vulnerability. A malicious actor with non-administrative privileges in Aria Operations may exploit this vulnerability to disclose credentials of other users of Aria Operations.

Impact

For European organizations, the disclosure of user credentials within VMware Aria Operations can lead to significant confidentiality breaches, enabling attackers to impersonate legitimate users and potentially access sensitive operational data or escalate privileges. This could compromise the security of IT operations management, affecting cloud and hybrid environments that rely on Aria Operations for monitoring and analytics. Given the critical role of Aria Operations in infrastructure management, unauthorized access could facilitate further attacks such as data exfiltration, sabotage, or disruption of services indirectly. The medium CVSS score reflects that while the vulnerability does not directly impact system integrity or availability, the exposure of credentials can have cascading effects on organizational security posture. Sectors such as finance, energy, telecommunications, and government agencies in Europe that depend on VMware solutions are particularly at risk. The absence of known exploits provides a window for proactive mitigation, but the risk remains significant due to the potential for insider threats or compromised accounts to exploit this vulnerability.

CWE-1188Initialization of a Resource with an Insecure Default (opens in a new tab)
Base weakness
The product initializes or sets a resource with a default that is intended to be changed by the product's installer, administrator, or maintainer, but the default is not secure.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Forgot Password (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V2.3.1 (opens in a new tab)
V2.6.2 (opens in a new tab)
V2.7.6 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Exploitation of Thunderbolt Protection Flaws (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

support.broadcom.com/group/ecx/support-content-view/-/support-content/Security%20Advisories/VMSA-2025-0015--VMware-Aria-Operations-and-VMware-Tools-updates-address-multiple-vulnerabilities--CVE-2025-41244-CVE-2025-41245--CVE-2025-41246-/36149 (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 6 Oct 2025, 17:14 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-1188

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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