CVE-2025-58278 is a vulnerability classified under CWE-200, indicating exposure of sensitive information to unauthorized actors. It specifically affects the Gallery app in Huawei's HarmonyOS version 5.0.1. The flaw arises from an identity authentication bypass, allowing an attacker to circumvent authentication mechanisms and gain unauthorized access to sensitive data stored or processed by the Gallery app. The vulnerability's CVSS 3.1 base score is 6.2, reflecting medium severity. The attack vector is local (AV:L), meaning the attacker must have local access to the device, but no privileges (PR:N) or user interaction (UI:N) are required, and the attack complexity is low (AC:L). The impact is high on confidentiality (C:H), but there is no impact on integrity (I:N) or availability (A:N). This suggests that while data confidentiality is compromised, the system's integrity and availability remain intact. No patches or exploits are currently reported, but the vulnerability is publicly disclosed as of October 11, 2025. The lack of known exploits reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate potential future exploitation. The vulnerability could be leveraged by malicious insiders or attackers with physical or local access to devices running the affected HarmonyOS version to extract sensitive information from the Gallery app without proper authentication.

For European organizations, the primary impact is the unauthorized exposure of sensitive information stored within the Gallery app on Huawei devices running HarmonyOS 5.0.1. This could include personal photos, corporate images, or other confidential visual data. The confidentiality breach could lead to privacy violations, intellectual property theft, or leakage of sensitive corporate information. Since the attack requires local access, the threat is more significant in environments where devices are shared, lost, or physically accessible to unauthorized personnel. Sectors such as government, telecommunications, finance, and critical infrastructure that may use Huawei devices could face increased risk. The vulnerability does not affect system integrity or availability, so operational disruption is unlikely. However, reputational damage and regulatory compliance issues related to data protection (e.g., GDPR) could arise if sensitive data is exposed. The absence of known exploits currently limits widespread impact but vigilance is necessary as exploit development could follow disclosure.

1. Monitor Huawei’s official channels for patches addressing CVE-2025-58278 and apply updates promptly once available. 2. Restrict physical and local access to devices running HarmonyOS 5.0.1, especially in sensitive environments, to reduce the risk of local exploitation. 3. Implement device-level encryption and strong lock-screen authentication to add layers of protection against unauthorized access. 4. Conduct regular audits and monitoring of device usage and access logs to detect suspicious local activity. 5. Educate users on the risks of leaving devices unattended or lending them to untrusted individuals. 6. Where possible, limit the use of Huawei devices with the affected OS version in high-risk or sensitive operational areas until patches are deployed. 7. Employ mobile device management (MDM) solutions to enforce security policies and remotely wipe or lock compromised devices. 8. Review and restrict app permissions for the Gallery app to minimize data exposure.