VulnerabilityPublished 25 Jun 2025

CVE-2025-41647: Lenze PLC Designer V4 · Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information

Affects Lenze PLC Designer V4Source CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.5 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 14:05 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

5.5Medium

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

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 0% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

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

Attack Vector: Local
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: Low
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: Local: The vulnerable component is not bound to the network stack and the attacker’s path is via read/write/execute capabilities. Either: the attacker exploits the vulnerability by accessing the target system locally (e.g., keyboard, console), or remotely (e.g., SSH); or the attacker relies on User Interaction by another person to perform actions required to exploit the vulnerability (e.g., tricking a legitimate user into opening a malicious document).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: Low: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide basic user capabilities that could normally affect only settings and files owned by a user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges may have the ability to cause an impact only to non-sensitive resources.
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 25 Jun 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

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Lenze PLC Designer V4	Affected =0.0.0	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

Restrict and monitor local access to systems running PLC Designer V4 to trusted personnel only, implementing strict access controls and session monitoring on engineering workstations.
Employ endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions to detect suspicious activities indicative of password extraction attempts or unauthorized access to PLC Designer software.
Segregate OT engineering networks from corporate IT networks using network segmentation and firewalls to reduce the risk of attackers gaining local access to vulnerable systems.
Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) on workstations and systems where possible to reduce the risk of unauthorized local access.
Regularly audit and rotate PLC controller passwords to limit the window of exposure if a password is compromised.
7. Educate engineering and operations staff about the risks of local credential exposure and enforce policies against installing unauthorized software or plugins that could facilitate exploitation. 8. Monitor vendor communications closely for forthcoming patches or updates addressing this vulnerability and plan for immediate deployment once available.

Description

A local, low-privileged attacker can learn the password of the connected controller in PLC Designer V4 due to an incorrect implementation that results in the password being displayed in plain text under special conditions.

Impact

For European organizations, especially those in manufacturing, industrial automation, and critical infrastructure sectors, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to operational technology (OT) security. Lenze PLCs are widely used in European industrial environments, including automotive, packaging, and factory automation sectors. Unauthorized disclosure of controller passwords can enable attackers to manipulate PLC configurations, disrupt industrial processes, or conduct espionage by accessing sensitive operational data. Although the vulnerability does not directly affect system integrity or availability, the confidentiality breach can be a stepping stone for further attacks, including lateral movement within OT networks or sabotage. The requirement for local access limits remote exploitation but insider threats or attackers who gain foothold on engineering workstations could leverage this vulnerability. Given the strategic importance of industrial automation in Europe’s economy and the increasing convergence of IT and OT networks, this vulnerability could have cascading effects on production continuity and safety. Organizations relying on Lenze PLC Designer V4 should consider this vulnerability a moderate risk that warrants prompt attention to prevent potential compromise of industrial controllers.

CWE-312Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessOWASP Top 10 A06:2025: Insecure Design (opens in a new tab)
The product stores sensitive information in cleartext within a resource that might be accessible to another control sphere.
Implementation · System Configuration · Operation
When storing data in the cloud (e.g., S3 buckets, Azure blobs, Google Cloud Storage, etc.), use the provider's controls to encrypt the data at rest.
Implementation · System Configuration · Operation
In some systems/environments such as cloud, the use of "double encryption" (at both the software and hardware layer) might be required, and the developer might be solely responsible for both layers, instead of shared responsibility with the administrator of the broader system/environment.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Secure Design Principles (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.1.6 (opens in a new tab)
V8.2.3 (opens in a new tab)
V8.2.2 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Retrieve Embedded Sensitive Data (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

certvde.com/en/advisories/VDE-2025-043/ (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 25 Jun 2025, 10:01 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-312

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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