CVE-2025-5731 is a medium-severity vulnerability identified in Red Hat Data Grid 8, specifically within the Infinispan Command Line Interface (CLI). The flaw arises from the handling of sensitive information—namely, a password decoded from a Base64-encoded Kubernetes secret. This password is processed in plaintext and embedded directly into a command string. When an invalid command is issued or a command is not found, the error message generated may inadvertently expose this sensitive password. The vulnerability does not require user interaction or privileges to exploit, but it does require local access (as indicated by the CVSS vector AV:L). The impact is primarily on confidentiality, as the password exposure could allow an attacker with local access to retrieve sensitive credentials, potentially leading to further unauthorized access or lateral movement within the environment. The vulnerability does not affect integrity or availability directly. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild, and no patches or fixes have been linked yet. The vulnerability was published on June 26, 2025, and is tracked under CVE-2025-5731 with a CVSS v3.1 score of 6.2, reflecting a medium severity level. The flaw is rooted in insecure error handling and improper sanitization of sensitive data in error messages within the Infinispan CLI component of Red Hat Data Grid 8.

For European organizations, the exposure of sensitive passwords in error messages can have significant consequences. Red Hat Data Grid is often used in enterprise environments for distributed in-memory data storage and caching, frequently deployed in Kubernetes clusters. The leakage of Kubernetes secrets could lead to unauthorized access to critical data grids, potentially compromising sensitive business data or enabling attackers to pivot to other parts of the infrastructure. This risk is heightened in environments where local access controls are weak or where multiple users share access to systems running Red Hat Data Grid. Additionally, organizations in regulated sectors such as finance, healthcare, and government may face compliance issues if sensitive credentials are exposed, potentially violating GDPR or other data protection regulations. Although the vulnerability requires local access, insider threats or attackers who have gained initial footholds could exploit this flaw to escalate privileges or move laterally. The absence of known exploits reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially as attackers may develop exploits once the vulnerability becomes widely known.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should: 1) Immediately audit and restrict local access to systems running Red Hat Data Grid 8, ensuring that only trusted administrators have CLI access. 2) Monitor and review error logs and messages for inadvertent exposure of sensitive information, and implement log sanitization to prevent sensitive data leakage. 3) Employ Kubernetes best practices by limiting the use of Base64-encoded secrets and consider using encrypted secrets management solutions that reduce plaintext exposure. 4) Apply the principle of least privilege to all users and processes interacting with the Infinispan CLI. 5) Stay alert for official patches or updates from Red Hat and plan prompt deployment once available. 6) Consider implementing runtime application self-protection (RASP) or endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools to detect anomalous access patterns or attempts to exploit this vulnerability. 7) Educate administrators about the risks of exposing sensitive data in error messages and encourage secure command usage and error handling practices.