CVE-2025-49731 is a vulnerability identified in Microsoft Teams for Android, specifically version 1.0.0. The issue is categorized under CWE-280, which pertains to improper handling of insufficient permissions or privileges. This vulnerability allows an authorized attacker—meaning someone with limited privileges already within the system or network—to elevate their privileges over a network. The vulnerability arises from Microsoft Teams for Android not correctly enforcing or validating permission levels, which could enable an attacker to perform actions beyond their intended scope. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 3.1, indicating a low severity level. The vector string (AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N/E:U/RL:O/RC:C) reveals that the attack requires network access (AV:N), has high attack complexity (AC:H), requires low privileges (PR:L), and no user interaction (UI:N). The impact is limited to confidentiality (C:L) with no impact on integrity or availability. The scope remains unchanged (S:U). There are no known exploits in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet. The vulnerability is primarily a design or implementation flaw in permission handling within the Microsoft Teams Android client, which could be leveraged by an attacker with some level of access to gain additional privileges, potentially exposing limited confidential information or accessing restricted features. However, the high attack complexity and requirement for existing low privileges reduce the likelihood of widespread exploitation.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-49731 is relatively limited due to its low severity and the requirement for an attacker to already have some level of access to the network or device. However, Microsoft Teams is widely used across Europe for corporate communication and collaboration, including in sectors such as finance, government, healthcare, and education. An attacker exploiting this vulnerability could potentially escalate privileges within the Teams Android app environment, possibly gaining access to sensitive communications or data that are otherwise restricted. While the confidentiality impact is low, any unauthorized access to corporate communications could lead to information leakage or facilitate further attacks. The lack of impact on integrity and availability means that the threat does not directly enable data manipulation or service disruption. Nonetheless, organizations with high compliance requirements (e.g., GDPR) should consider the risk of even limited data exposure. The vulnerability’s exploitation complexity and absence of known active exploits reduce immediate risk, but it remains a concern for organizations with mobile workforce using Teams on Android devices.

Given the nature of the vulnerability, European organizations should prioritize the following specific mitigation steps: 1) Ensure that Microsoft Teams for Android is updated to the latest version once Microsoft releases a patch addressing CVE-2025-49731. 2) Implement strict mobile device management (MDM) policies to control app permissions and restrict installation of unauthorized or outdated app versions. 3) Enforce network segmentation and access controls to limit the ability of low-privilege users or compromised devices to access sensitive network segments or services. 4) Monitor network traffic and application logs for unusual privilege escalation attempts or anomalous behavior within Teams usage. 5) Educate users about the importance of applying app updates promptly and recognizing suspicious activity on their devices. 6) Consider deploying endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions on mobile devices to detect potential exploitation attempts. 7) Review and tighten Teams-specific permission settings and policies within the organization’s Microsoft 365 environment to minimize exposure. These steps go beyond generic advice by focusing on controlling the environment where the vulnerability could be exploited and preparing for rapid patch deployment.