CVE-2025-9094 is a medium-severity vulnerability identified in ThingsBoard version 4.1, specifically within the Add Gateway Handler component. The vulnerability arises due to improper neutralization of special elements used in the template engine, which can lead to injection attacks or unintended code execution within the template processing context. This flaw allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to manipulate input that is processed by the template engine without adequate sanitization or escaping of special characters or elements. Consequently, this can lead to partial compromise of data integrity or limited information disclosure, depending on how the template engine processes the injected elements. The vulnerability does not require user interaction and can be exploited remotely without authentication, increasing its risk profile. The vendor has acknowledged the issue and plans to release a fix in the upcoming ThingsBoard 4.2 release, with backported patches for Long-Term Support (LTS) versions starting from 4.0. Currently, no known public exploits are reported in the wild, but the vulnerability details have been disclosed publicly, which could increase the likelihood of exploitation attempts. The CVSS 4.0 base score is 5.3, reflecting a medium severity level, with attack vector being network-based, low attack complexity, no privileges required, and no user interaction needed. The impact primarily affects the integrity and confidentiality aspects of the system, with no direct impact on availability reported. Given that ThingsBoard is an open-source IoT platform used for device management and data visualization, exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized data manipulation or leakage within IoT deployments that rely on the affected versions.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-9094 can be significant, especially for those deploying ThingsBoard 4.1 in critical IoT infrastructure such as smart cities, industrial automation, energy management, and healthcare monitoring systems. Exploitation could allow attackers to inject malicious template elements, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive telemetry data, manipulation of device configurations, or disruption of data visualization dashboards. This could undermine operational integrity and data trustworthiness, leading to erroneous decision-making or compliance violations under regulations like GDPR if personal or sensitive data is exposed. The remote and unauthenticated nature of the exploit increases risk, particularly for organizations with publicly accessible ThingsBoard instances or insufficient network segmentation. While no active exploits are currently known, the public disclosure may prompt threat actors to develop attack tools, increasing the urgency for European entities to assess and remediate affected deployments. The medium severity rating suggests that while the vulnerability is not critical, it still poses a tangible risk to confidentiality and integrity, which are paramount in IoT environments where data accuracy and security are essential for safety and regulatory compliance.

European organizations using ThingsBoard 4.1 should prioritize upgrading to version 4.2 or later once the patch is released, as this will include the official fix for CVE-2025-9094. Until then, organizations should implement compensating controls such as: 1) Restricting network access to ThingsBoard management interfaces by enforcing strict firewall rules and VPN-only access to reduce exposure to remote attackers. 2) Applying input validation and sanitization at the gateway or proxy level to filter out suspicious template elements or special characters before they reach the vulnerable component. 3) Monitoring and logging template engine usage and gateway handler activities to detect anomalous input patterns indicative of exploitation attempts. 4) Conducting internal code reviews or temporary patches if feasible, to neutralize special elements in templates manually. 5) Segmenting IoT networks to isolate ThingsBoard instances from critical operational technology (OT) systems, limiting potential lateral movement. 6) Educating administrators on the vulnerability and encouraging prompt application of vendor updates. These targeted mitigations go beyond generic advice by focusing on network-level protections, proactive monitoring, and interim input filtering to reduce attack surface until the official patch is deployed.