CVE-2025-50079 is a vulnerability identified in Oracle Corporation's MySQL Server, specifically within the Server Optimizer component. It affects multiple supported versions, including 8.0.0 through 8.0.42, 8.4.0 through 8.4.5, and 9.0.0 through 9.3.0. The vulnerability allows a high-privileged attacker with network access via multiple protocols to exploit the flaw without requiring user interaction. The core issue is a denial-of-service (DoS) condition where the attacker can cause the MySQL Server to hang or crash repeatedly, resulting in complete service unavailability. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-400, which relates to uncontrolled resource consumption, indicating that the flaw likely involves resource exhaustion or similar mechanisms leading to server instability. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 4.9, reflecting a medium severity primarily due to its impact on availability and the requirement for high privileges to exploit. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet. The vulnerability's network attack vector and low attack complexity make it a concern for environments where MySQL servers are exposed to trusted high-privileged users or internal networks. However, the lack of impact on confidentiality or integrity limits the scope of damage to service disruption only.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a risk primarily to the availability of critical database services running MySQL Server versions affected by this flaw. Organizations relying on MySQL for business-critical applications, including e-commerce platforms, financial services, healthcare systems, and public sector databases, may experience service outages if exploited. The requirement for high privileges reduces the risk from external attackers but raises concerns about insider threats or compromised administrative accounts. Disruption of MySQL services can lead to operational downtime, loss of productivity, and potential financial losses. Additionally, organizations in regulated sectors may face compliance challenges if service availability impacts data processing timelines. Since the vulnerability does not affect data confidentiality or integrity, the direct risk of data breaches is low, but the denial-of-service could indirectly affect business continuity and trust.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should: 1) Immediately audit and restrict high-privileged access to MySQL servers, ensuring that only authorized personnel have such privileges and that network access is tightly controlled. 2) Implement network segmentation and firewall rules to limit exposure of MySQL servers to trusted internal networks only, reducing the attack surface. 3) Monitor MySQL server logs and performance metrics for unusual activity or signs of resource exhaustion that could indicate exploitation attempts. 4) Apply principle of least privilege to database users and services to minimize the number of accounts with high privileges. 5) Prepare incident response plans specifically addressing MySQL service outages to reduce downtime impact. 6) Stay alert for official patches or updates from Oracle and plan for timely deployment once available. 7) Consider deploying database high-availability solutions or failover mechanisms to maintain service continuity in case of DoS events. 8) Conduct regular security training for database administrators to recognize and prevent misuse of privileged access.