CVE-2025-7738 is a vulnerability identified in Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform (AAP) version 2.5 for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8. The issue arises from the Gateway API component of AAP, which returns the client secret for certain GitHub Enterprise authenticators in clear text. This means that when privileged users such as administrators or auditors access the authenticator configurations, they can see sensitive credentials without any encryption or masking. Although access to this information is restricted to users with elevated privileges, the exposure of client secrets in clear text significantly increases the risk of accidental leaks, insider threats, or misuse of these credentials. The vulnerability does not require user interaction and does not affect the integrity or availability of the system directly, but it compromises confidentiality. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 4.4 (medium severity), reflecting that the attack vector is network-based but requires high privileges and has high attack complexity. There are no known exploits in the wild at the time of publication, and no patches or mitigations have been explicitly linked in the provided data. The vulnerability specifically affects the handling of GitHub Enterprise authenticators, which are used to integrate GitHub Enterprise authentication into Ansible Automation workflows, a common practice in enterprise DevOps environments.

For European organizations, the exposure of client secrets in Ansible Automation Platform could lead to unauthorized access to GitHub Enterprise repositories or services if these credentials are leaked or misused. This can result in the compromise of source code, automation scripts, and deployment pipelines, potentially enabling further lateral movement or supply chain attacks. Organizations relying heavily on Ansible Automation for infrastructure management and continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) processes are particularly at risk. The impact is heightened in sectors with strict data protection regulations such as finance, healthcare, and critical infrastructure, where credential leaks could lead to compliance violations and reputational damage. Although the vulnerability requires privileged access, insider threats or compromised administrative accounts could exploit this flaw to escalate access or exfiltrate sensitive information. The lack of direct impact on system availability or integrity means the threat is more about confidentiality breaches, which can have long-term consequences if exploited.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should first ensure strict access controls and monitoring on privileged accounts that can access Ansible Automation Platform configurations. Implement role-based access control (RBAC) to limit the number of users who can view authenticator configurations. Audit and log all access to sensitive configuration data to detect any unauthorized or suspicious activity. Organizations should also consider encrypting sensitive configuration files or secrets at rest and in transit, if not already implemented. Until an official patch is released, avoid sharing or exporting authenticator configurations unnecessarily. Use vault solutions or secret management tools integrated with Ansible to handle credentials securely rather than storing them in the platform directly. Regularly rotate client secrets and credentials used in GitHub Enterprise authenticators to minimize the risk window. Finally, keep the Ansible Automation Platform updated with the latest security patches once available and monitor Red Hat advisories for any updates related to this vulnerability.