CVE-2025-53651 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting the Jenkins HTML Publisher Plugin version 425 and earlier. The vulnerability arises because the plugin, during the Publish HTML reports post-build step, logs messages that include absolute file paths of archived files on the Jenkins controller's file system. This behavior leads to information disclosure, as sensitive details about the directory structure and file locations on the Jenkins controller are exposed in the build logs. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-36 (Absolute Path Traversal), which typically involves improper handling of file paths that can reveal sensitive system information. Although this vulnerability does not directly allow remote code execution or privilege escalation, the exposure of absolute paths can aid attackers in crafting more targeted attacks against the Jenkins environment by revealing internal file system layouts. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 6.3, reflecting a medium severity with the vector AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L, indicating network attack vector, low attack complexity, requiring privileges, no user interaction, unchanged scope, and low impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet, suggesting that remediation may require updates from the Jenkins project or manual mitigation steps.

For European organizations, this vulnerability can lead to the unintended disclosure of sensitive internal information about Jenkins controller file systems. Such information leakage can facilitate further attacks, including privilege escalation or targeted exploitation of other vulnerabilities by revealing file system structure and potentially sensitive file locations. Organizations relying heavily on Jenkins for continuous integration and deployment (CI/CD) pipelines may face increased risk of reconnaissance by threat actors. This is particularly critical for industries with stringent data protection requirements such as finance, healthcare, and critical infrastructure sectors prevalent in Europe. While the vulnerability itself does not directly compromise system integrity or availability, the information disclosed could be leveraged in multi-stage attacks, increasing the overall risk posture of affected organizations.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should: 1) Immediately review Jenkins build logs for exposure of absolute paths and restrict access to these logs to trusted personnel only. 2) Upgrade the Jenkins HTML Publisher Plugin to the latest version once a patch is released by the Jenkins project, as this is the definitive fix. 3) Implement strict access controls on the Jenkins controller and its logs to minimize the risk of unauthorized access to sensitive information. 4) Consider sanitizing or customizing logging configurations to avoid logging absolute paths until an official patch is available. 5) Conduct regular audits of Jenkins plugins and CI/CD pipeline configurations to detect and remediate similar information disclosure issues. 6) Educate DevOps and security teams about the risks of information leakage through build logs and encourage best practices in plugin usage and configuration.