CVE-2025-68970 is a vulnerability identified in Huawei's HarmonyOS operating system, specifically within the media library module. The root cause is improper input validation (CWE-20), which leads to a permission verification bypass. This means that an attacker with low-level privileges on the device can manipulate inputs to circumvent normal permission checks, gaining unauthorized access to media library services that should be protected. The vulnerability affects multiple versions of HarmonyOS, from 3.0.0 through 4.3.1, indicating a long-standing issue across several releases. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 6.1, reflecting a medium severity level. The vector indicates that exploitation requires local access (AV:L), low attack complexity (AC:L), low privileges (PR:L), and user interaction (UI:R). The scope remains unchanged (S:U), but the impact on confidentiality is high (C:H), with limited impact on integrity (I:L) and availability (A:L). Successful exploitation could allow an attacker to access confidential media data or services without proper authorization, potentially leading to data leakage or privacy violations. Currently, there are no known exploits in the wild, and no patches have been linked yet. The vulnerability was published in January 2026, with the reservation date in late December 2025. Given the nature of the media library module, the attack surface is primarily local users or malicious apps running on the device. The vulnerability underscores the importance of robust input validation and permission enforcement in OS components handling sensitive data.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2025-68970 lies in the potential compromise of confidentiality of media-related services on devices running affected versions of HarmonyOS. This could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive media files or streams, risking data leakage and privacy breaches. Organizations relying on Huawei devices for communication, media consumption, or internal applications may face increased risk of insider threats or malicious local applications exploiting this flaw. Although the vulnerability requires local access and user interaction, the widespread use of Huawei devices in certain sectors means that attackers could leverage social engineering or malware to trigger exploitation. The limited impact on integrity and availability reduces the risk of system-wide disruption, but confidentiality breaches can still have significant regulatory and reputational consequences, especially under GDPR and other European data protection laws. The absence of known exploits currently provides a window for proactive mitigation, but organizations should remain vigilant given the medium severity and potential for future exploitation.

1. Monitor Huawei’s official channels for patches addressing CVE-2025-68970 and apply them promptly once released. 2. Restrict local access to devices running affected HarmonyOS versions by enforcing strong authentication and limiting physical device access. 3. Implement application whitelisting and restrict installation of untrusted or unknown apps to reduce the risk of malicious apps exploiting the vulnerability. 4. Educate users about the risks of interacting with suspicious media files or applications that could trigger the vulnerability. 5. Employ endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions capable of monitoring anomalous behavior in media library access patterns. 6. Conduct regular audits of device configurations and permissions related to media services to ensure no unauthorized changes. 7. For organizations deploying Huawei devices, consider network segmentation to isolate critical systems from potentially vulnerable endpoints. 8. Collaborate with Huawei support for guidance and early access to security updates. 9. Review and enhance input validation and permission enforcement policies in internal development if integrating with HarmonyOS components. 10. Maintain incident response readiness to quickly contain and remediate any exploitation attempts.