CVE-2025-49741 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting Microsoft Edge (Chromium-based), specifically version 1.0.0.0. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-268 (Privilege Chaining) and CWE-200 (Information Exposure). It allows an unauthorized attacker to disclose sensitive information over a network without requiring prior authentication, though user interaction is necessary to trigger the exploit. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 7.4, indicating a high impact primarily on confidentiality, with no impact on integrity or availability. The vulnerability's vector is network-based (AV:N), with low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), but requires user interaction (UI:R). The scope is changed (S:C), meaning the vulnerability affects resources beyond the initially vulnerable component. The exploitability is rated as official (RL:O) with confirmed fix status (RC:C), although no patch links are currently provided. The vulnerability stems from improper privilege chaining within the browser, allowing attackers to escalate privileges indirectly to access sensitive information that should otherwise be protected. This can lead to unauthorized disclosure of confidential data transmitted or processed by the browser. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, but the potential for exploitation exists given the low complexity and network attack vector. The vulnerability affects the initial release version of Microsoft Edge Chromium-based browser, which may still be in use in some environments or embedded in legacy systems.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to confidentiality of sensitive information accessed or transmitted via Microsoft Edge. Given the browser's widespread adoption in corporate and government environments across Europe, unauthorized information disclosure could lead to leakage of intellectual property, personal data protected under GDPR, or confidential communications. The changed scope indicates that the attacker could access data beyond the browser sandbox, potentially affecting other system components or networked resources. This could undermine trust in secure communications and lead to regulatory penalties if personal data is exposed. The requirement for user interaction means phishing or social engineering could be used to trigger the exploit, increasing risk in environments with less user security awareness. Although no active exploits are reported, the high CVSS score and ease of exploitation suggest that threat actors may develop exploits rapidly, especially targeting sectors with high-value data such as finance, healthcare, and government agencies in Europe.

European organizations should prioritize updating Microsoft Edge to the latest patched version as soon as it becomes available, even though no patch links are currently provided, monitoring Microsoft security advisories closely. In the interim, organizations can mitigate risk by enforcing strict browser usage policies, disabling or restricting use of the affected Edge version, and employing endpoint protection solutions capable of detecting anomalous browser behavior. User education campaigns should be intensified to reduce the likelihood of successful social engineering attacks that require user interaction. Network-level controls such as web filtering and intrusion detection systems should be tuned to detect and block suspicious traffic patterns associated with exploitation attempts. Additionally, organizations should audit and limit browser extensions and plugins that could be leveraged in privilege chaining scenarios. Implementing strict data loss prevention (DLP) policies can help monitor and prevent unauthorized data exfiltration resulting from this vulnerability.