VulnerabilityPublished 2 Jan 2026

CVE-2025-69417: plex.tv backend · Incorrect Authorization

Affects plex.tv backendSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.0 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 11:07 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

5.0Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 22% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Scope: Changed
Confidentiality: Low
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: Low: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide basic user capabilities that could normally affect only settings and files owned by a user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges may have the ability to cause an impact only to non-sensitive resources.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Changed: An exploited vulnerability can affect resources beyond the security scope managed by the security authority of the vulnerable component. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are different and managed by different security authorities.
Confidentiality: Low: There is some loss of confidentiality. Access to some restricted information is obtained, but the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained, or the amount or kind of loss is limited. The information disclosure does not cause a direct, serious loss to the impacted component.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 2 Jan 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Plexplex.tv backend	Affected <=2025-12-31	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

Monitor Plex official channels for security advisories and apply patches or updates promptly once available to address CVE-2025-69417.
Restrict issuance and distribution of device tokens to trusted devices only, implementing strict access controls and token lifecycle management.
Limit access to the shared_servers endpoint through network segmentation, firewall rules, or API gateway policies to reduce exposure.
Implement robust authentication and authorization mechanisms, including multi-factor authentication (MFA) for administrative and device token issuance processes.
Conduct regular audits of share tokens and shared media libraries to detect unauthorized access or anomalous sharing patterns.
Educate users and administrators about the risks of token compromise and enforce strong credential hygiene.
Employ monitoring and logging of API access to detect suspicious activity related to shared_servers endpoint usage.
Consider deploying Web Application Firewalls (WAF) with custom rules to detect and block unauthorized attempts to access share tokens.
For organizations using Plex in sensitive environments, consider isolating Plex servers from critical networks and limiting external access.
Prepare incident response plans that include steps for token revocation and forensic analysis in case of suspected compromise.

Description

In the plex.tv backend for Plex Media Server (PMS) through 2025-12-31, a non-server device token can retrieve share tokens (intended for unrelated access) via a shared_servers endpoint.

Impact

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2025-69417 is unauthorized access to shared media content hosted on Plex Media Server instances. While this does not directly affect critical infrastructure or sensitive business data, it can lead to privacy breaches, unauthorized data exposure, and potential reputational damage, especially for organizations using Plex for internal media distribution or collaborative environments. The confidentiality impact is limited to media content and associated metadata, with no direct impact on system integrity or availability. However, unauthorized access could be leveraged as a foothold for further attacks if attackers gain additional credentials or escalate privileges. Organizations with extensive use of Plex for media sharing, including educational institutions, media companies, and enterprises with internal media repositories, may face increased risk. The vulnerability's remote exploitability and low complexity make it accessible to moderately skilled attackers. Given the shared_servers endpoint's role, attackers could enumerate or access multiple share tokens, potentially expanding the scope of unauthorized access. The lack of known exploits in the wild reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially as public disclosure may prompt attackers to develop exploits. European data protection regulations, such as GDPR, require organizations to protect personal data, and unauthorized media access could constitute a data breach if personal information is involved.

CWE-863Incorrect Authorization (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #17OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check.
Architecture and Design
Divide the product into anonymous, normal, privileged, and administrative areas. Reduce the attack surface by carefully mapping roles with data and functionality. Use role-based access control (RBAC) to enforce the roles at the appropriate boundaries.
Architecture and Design
Ensure that access control checks are performed related to the business logic. These checks may be different than the access control checks that are applied to more generic resources such as files, connections, processes, memory, and database records.
Architecture and Design · Libraries or Frameworks
Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.8 (opens in a new tab)
V13.4.2 (opens in a new tab)
V7.2.2 (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

github.com/lufinkey/vulnerability-research/blob/main/CVE-2025-34158/README.md (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 9 Jan 2026, 19:31 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-863

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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