CVE-2025-27803 in cPH2 Charging Station
Summary
by MITRE • 05/21/2025
The devices do not implement any authentication for the web interface or the MQTT server. An attacker who has network access to the device immediately gets administrative access to the devices and can perform arbitrary administrative actions and reconfigure the devices or potentially gain access to sensitive data.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/21/2025
This vulnerability represents a critical authentication failure that fundamentally compromises the security posture of affected devices. The absence of authentication mechanisms for both web interfaces and MQTT servers creates an unauthenticated access vector that allows any network-connected attacker to achieve full administrative control over the device. This flaw directly maps to weakness category 308 in the CWE database, which specifically addresses the lack of authentication in security-critical components. The vulnerability exists at the core of device security architecture, where authentication should serve as the primary gatekeeper for administrative functions but is entirely missing from the implementation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and far-reaching, as it eliminates any network-based access control for administrative functions. Attackers can immediately perform arbitrary administrative actions including but not limited to configuration changes, firmware updates, data exfiltration, and potentially establishing persistent access points within the network. The MQTT protocol exposure compounds the risk significantly since MQTT brokers typically handle device-to-device communications and often contain sensitive operational data. This vulnerability aligns with several ATT&CK techniques including T1078 for valid accounts and T1566 for phishing, as attackers can leverage this access to move laterally within networks or establish command and control channels. The lack of authentication creates a direct path to privilege escalation and system compromise.
The technical nature of this flaw stems from a fundamental design decision that omits authentication controls entirely from the device's security architecture. This represents a failure to implement basic security engineering principles that require authentication for all administrative interfaces. The vulnerability affects the device's ability to maintain confidentiality, integrity, and availability as defined by the CIA triad. Devices that expose web interfaces and MQTT services without authentication create an attack surface that is immediately exploitable by any network entity. Network access alone becomes sufficient to gain complete administrative control, eliminating the need for additional exploitation techniques or credential harvesting. This vulnerability also demonstrates poor security by design practices that violate the principle of least privilege, where all access should be authenticated and authorized before granting administrative capabilities.
Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing robust authentication mechanisms across all device interfaces including both web management portals and MQTT communication endpoints. Organizations should immediately disable or restrict access to affected devices until proper authentication controls are implemented. Network segmentation and access control lists should be deployed to limit exposure of these administrative interfaces to trusted networks only. Regular security assessments should be conducted to identify and remediate similar authentication gaps in other networked devices. The implementation of multi-factor authentication for administrative access should be considered where feasible. Additionally, network monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual administrative access patterns that might indicate unauthorized access attempts. Device manufacturers should implement security patches that enforce authentication requirements and provide clear documentation for secure configuration practices. This vulnerability highlights the critical importance of implementing security controls at the design phase rather than as afterthoughts, emphasizing the need for comprehensive threat modeling and security architecture reviews.