CVE-2025-53655 is a vulnerability identified in the Jenkins Statistics Gatherer Plugin version 2.0.3 and earlier. The core issue is that the plugin fails to mask the AWS Secret Key on the global configuration form within Jenkins. This means that when administrators or users configure the plugin, the AWS Secret Key is displayed in plaintext rather than being obscured or hidden. As a result, anyone with access to the Jenkins configuration interface or who can intercept the configuration page could potentially observe and capture this sensitive credential. The AWS Secret Key is a critical component for authenticating and authorizing access to AWS resources, and its exposure can lead to unauthorized access to cloud infrastructure, data exfiltration, or manipulation of cloud services. The vulnerability does not require exploitation through code execution or complex attack vectors; it is primarily an information disclosure flaw due to improper handling of sensitive data in the user interface. There are no known exploits in the wild at the time of publication, and no CVSS score has been assigned yet. The vulnerability was published on July 9, 2025, and affects all versions up to and including 2.0.3 of the plugin. The lack of masking increases the risk of insider threats or attackers who have gained limited access to Jenkins but not necessarily full administrative privileges. Since Jenkins is widely used for continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines, the exposure of AWS credentials could enable attackers to pivot from the build environment to the cloud infrastructure, potentially compromising production environments or sensitive data stored in AWS services.

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability can be significant, especially for those heavily reliant on Jenkins for their CI/CD pipelines and AWS for cloud infrastructure. Exposure of AWS Secret Keys can lead to unauthorized access to cloud resources, including data storage (S3 buckets), compute instances (EC2), databases (RDS), and other critical services. This can result in data breaches, service disruptions, financial losses due to resource misuse, and damage to reputation. Organizations in regulated sectors such as finance, healthcare, and critical infrastructure may face compliance violations under GDPR and other data protection laws if sensitive data is compromised. Additionally, attackers leveraging this vulnerability could deploy malicious code or alter deployment pipelines, leading to supply chain attacks. The risk is heightened in environments where Jenkins access controls are lax or where multiple users share access to the Jenkins configuration interface. Since the vulnerability does not require advanced exploitation techniques, even low-skilled attackers or insiders could exploit it if they gain access to Jenkins. The absence of known exploits in the wild suggests that proactive patching and mitigation can effectively prevent incidents. However, the widespread use of Jenkins and AWS in Europe means that many organizations could be exposed if they use the affected plugin versions.

Organizations should immediately upgrade the Jenkins Statistics Gatherer Plugin to a version that addresses this vulnerability once available. Until a patched version is released, the following specific mitigations are recommended: 1) Restrict access to the Jenkins global configuration page strictly to trusted administrators to minimize exposure of the AWS Secret Key. 2) Implement network segmentation and access controls to limit who can reach the Jenkins server, especially the configuration interface. 3) Rotate AWS Secret Keys used in Jenkins to invalidate any potentially exposed credentials. 4) Use Jenkins credentials management features or external secrets management tools that securely store and mask sensitive information instead of embedding secrets directly in plugin configurations. 5) Monitor Jenkins logs and AWS account activity for any suspicious access patterns or unauthorized API calls. 6) Educate Jenkins administrators and users about the risks of exposing credentials and enforce strong authentication mechanisms (e.g., MFA) for Jenkins access. 7) Consider auditing all plugins for similar issues related to secret handling to prevent future exposures. These measures go beyond generic advice by focusing on access control, credential rotation, and secure secret management tailored to this specific vulnerability.