CVE-2025-54635 is a medium-severity vulnerability identified in Huawei's HarmonyOS version 5.1.0, specifically within the distributed notification service component. The vulnerability is classified as a Use After Free (CWE-416), which occurs when a program continues to use pointers to memory after it has been freed. In this case, the issue involves returning released pointers, which can lead to undefined behavior such as memory corruption, crashes, or potentially arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability's CVSS v3.1 base score is 5.9, indicating a moderate risk. The attack vector is adjacent network (AV:A), meaning exploitation requires access to the same or a logically adjacent network segment. The attack complexity is low (AC:L), but it requires low privileges (PR:L) and user interaction (UI:R). The scope is changed (S:C), meaning exploitation can affect resources beyond the vulnerable component. The impact metrics indicate low confidentiality and integrity impact but a low to moderate impact on availability (C:L/I:L/A:L). Successful exploitation could lead to denial of service or destabilization of the distributed notification service, impacting system availability. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet. The vulnerability was reserved on July 28, 2025, and published on August 6, 2025.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-54635 depends largely on the deployment of Huawei HarmonyOS devices within their infrastructure or user base. HarmonyOS is primarily used in Huawei's IoT devices, smartphones, and other smart devices. If such devices are integrated into enterprise environments, especially in sectors relying on distributed notification services for critical operations (e.g., manufacturing, smart building management, or telecommunications), exploitation could lead to service disruptions. The vulnerability could cause denial of service conditions, affecting availability and potentially interrupting business processes. Given the adjacent network attack vector, attackers would need network proximity or compromised internal networks, which could be feasible in environments with insufficient network segmentation. The requirement for user interaction reduces the likelihood of widespread automated exploitation but does not eliminate targeted attacks. Confidentiality and integrity impacts are low, so data breaches or unauthorized data modification are less likely. However, availability impacts could affect operational continuity, particularly in critical infrastructure or industries with high reliance on Huawei devices. Additionally, given geopolitical tensions and scrutiny around Huawei products in Europe, organizations may face increased pressure to assess and mitigate risks associated with Huawei devices.

To mitigate CVE-2025-54635 effectively, European organizations should: 1) Inventory and identify all Huawei HarmonyOS 5.1.0 devices within their environment, focusing on those using distributed notification services. 2) Implement strict network segmentation to limit adjacent network access, ensuring that potentially vulnerable devices are isolated from critical network segments. 3) Enforce least privilege principles to minimize the ability of low-privilege users to exploit the vulnerability. 4) Educate users about the risk of interacting with suspicious notifications or prompts that could trigger the vulnerability, reducing the likelihood of successful user-interaction-based exploitation. 5) Monitor network traffic and device logs for unusual activity indicative of exploitation attempts, such as repeated crashes or service disruptions in the distributed notification service. 6) Engage with Huawei or trusted security advisories to obtain patches or updates as they become available and prioritize timely deployment. 7) Consider deploying host-based intrusion detection or endpoint protection solutions capable of detecting anomalous behavior related to memory corruption. 8) For critical environments, evaluate the necessity of Huawei HarmonyOS devices and consider alternative solutions if risk tolerance is low.