CVE-2025-46548VulnerabilityPublished 3 Jun 2025Updated 11 Jun 2025

CVE-2025-46548: Apache Pekko Management · Improper Authentication

Affects Apache Pekko ManagementSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.5 Medium · fixed in 1.1.1 : update Apache Pekko Management when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 06:26 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.5Medium

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

EPSS: 0.7% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 54% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 1.1.1

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

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: Low
Integrity: Low
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: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
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: Low: There is some loss of confidentiality. Access to some restricted information is obtained, but the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained, or the amount or kind of loss is limited. The information disclosure does not cause a direct, serious loss to the impacted component.
Integrity: Low: Modification of data is possible, but the attacker does not have control over the consequence of a modification, or the amount of modification is limited. The data modification does not have a direct, serious impact on 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 3 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 2026-10-26.

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 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
GitHubapache/pekko-management`pkg:github/apache/pekko-management`Other threats	Affected =1.0.0	Fixed in–

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

European organizations should prioritize upgrading Apache Pekko Management to version 1.1.1 or later to address this authentication bypass vulnerability. Beyond patching, organizations must enforce strict network segmentation and firewall rules to restrict access to Management API ports exclusively to trusted internal hosts or VPNs. Implementing network-level access controls reduces the attack surface even if authentication mechanisms fail. Additionally, organizations should audit their current Pekko Management configurations to verify that Basic Authentication is correctly applied and test for unauthorized access attempts. Monitoring and logging access to management endpoints can help detect suspicious activities early. Where feasible, consider deploying Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) or API gateways with authentication enforcement as an additional security layer. Finally, review and update incident response plans to include scenarios involving management API compromise.

Description

If you enable Basic Authentication in Pekko Management using the Java DSL, the authenticator may not be properly applied. Users that rely on authentication instead of making sure the Management API ports are only available to trusted users are recommended to upgrade to version 1.1.1, which fixes this issue. Akka was affected by the same issue and has released the fix in version 1.6.1.

Impact

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to systems using Apache Pekko Management 1.0.0, especially in environments where management APIs are exposed beyond trusted internal networks. Unauthorized access to management APIs could lead to disclosure of sensitive operational data or unauthorized changes to system configurations, potentially disrupting business operations or exposing internal infrastructure details. Given the medium severity and network exploitable nature, attackers could leverage this flaw to gain footholds in critical application management layers. Organizations in sectors with strict regulatory requirements for data protection, such as finance, healthcare, and critical infrastructure, may face compliance risks if unauthorized access leads to data breaches. The lack of required privileges or user interaction lowers the barrier for exploitation, increasing the urgency for timely patching. However, the absence of known exploits in the wild suggests that immediate widespread attacks are not yet observed, providing a window for mitigation. The impact is heightened if management API ports are exposed to untrusted networks without additional access controls.

CWE-287Improper Authentication (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighOWASP Top 10 A07:2025: Authentication Failures (opens in a new tab)
When an actor claims to have a given identity, the product does not prove or insufficiently proves that the claim is correct.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
Architecture and Design · Libraries or Frameworks
Use an authentication framework or library such as the OWASP ESAPI Authentication feature.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
OWASP Authentication (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V2.8.5 (opens in a new tab)
V2.8.4 (opens in a new tab)
V9.2.3 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Fake the Source of Data (opens in a new tab)
Utilizing REST's Trust in the System Resource to Obtain Sensitive Data (opens in a new tab)
Session Hijacking (opens in a new tab)
Token Impersonation (opens in a new tab)
Upload a Web Shell to a Web Server (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 11 Jul 2025, 03:02 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-287

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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