Information Disclosure
Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.
How It Works
Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security. This happens through multiple channels: verbose error messages that display stack traces revealing internal paths and frameworks, improperly secured debug endpoints left active in production, and misconfigured servers that expose directory listings or version control artifacts like .git folders. APIs often leak excessive data in responses—returning full user objects when only a name is needed, or revealing system internals through metadata fields.
Attackers exploit these exposures systematically. They probe for common sensitive files (.env, config.php, backup archives), trigger error conditions to extract framework details, and analyze response timing or content differences to enumerate valid usernames or resources. Even subtle variations—like "invalid password" versus "user not found"—enable account enumeration. Exposed configuration files frequently contain database credentials, API keys, or internal service URLs that unlock further attack vectors.
The attack flow typically starts with passive reconnaissance: examining HTTP headers, JavaScript bundles, and public endpoints for version information and architecture clues. Active probing follows—testing predictable paths, manipulating parameters to trigger exceptions, and comparing responses across similar requests to identify information leakage patterns.
Impact
- Credential compromise: Exposed configuration files, hardcoded secrets in source code, or API keys enable direct authentication bypass
- Attack surface mapping: Stack traces, framework versions, and internal paths help attackers craft targeted exploits for known vulnerabilities
- Data breach: Direct exposure of user data, payment information, or proprietary business logic through oversharing APIs or accessible backups
- Privilege escalation pathway: Internal URLs, service discovery information, and architecture details facilitate lateral movement and SSRF attacks
- Compliance violations: GDPR, PCI-DSS, and HIPAA penalties for exposing regulated data through preventable disclosures
Real-World Examples
A major Git repository exposure affected thousands of websites when .git folders remained accessible on production servers, allowing attackers to reconstruct entire source code histories including deleted commits containing credentials. Tools like GitDumper automated mass exploitation of this misconfiguration.
Cloud storage misconfigurations have repeatedly exposed sensitive data when companies left S3 buckets or Azure Blob containers publicly readable. One incident exposed 150 million voter records because verbose API error messages revealed the storage URL structure, and no authentication was required.
Framework debug modes left enabled in production have caused numerous breaches. Django's DEBUG=True setting exposed complete stack traces with database queries and environment variables, while Laravel's debug pages revealed encryption keys through the APP_KEY variable in environment dumps.
Mitigation
- Generic error pages: Return uniform error messages to users; log detailed exceptions server-side only
- Disable debug modes: Enforce production configurations that suppress stack traces, verbose logging, and debug endpoints through deployment automation
- Access control audits: Restrict or remove development artifacts (
.git, backup files,phpinfo()) and internal endpoints before deployment - Response minimization: API responses should return only necessary fields; implement allowlists rather than blocklists for data exposure
- Security headers: Deploy
X-Content-Type-Options, remove server version banners, and disable directory indexing - Timing consistency: Ensure authentication and validation responses take uniform time regardless of input validity
Recent CVEs (68869)
Acrobat Reader versions 20.005.30539, 23.008.20470 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Acrobat Reader versions 20.005.30539, 23.008.20470 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Acrobat Reader versions 20.005.30539, 23.008.20470 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Acrobat Reader versions 20.005.30539, 23.008.20470 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Substance3D - Painter versions 9.1.1 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability when parsing a crafted file, which could result in a read past the end of an allocated memory. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Substance3D - Painter versions 9.1.1 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Substance3D - Painter versions 9.1.1 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Substance3D - Painter versions 9.1.1 and earlier are affected by an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that could lead to disclosure of sensitive memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Landing Page Cat - Coming Soon Page, Maintenance Page & Squeeze Pages plugin for WordPress is vulnerable to Sensitive Information Exposure in all versions up to, and including, 1.7.2. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Exposure of Sensitive Information vulnerability could allow attackers to access sensitive data that should not be disclosed.
The jail(2) system call has not limited a visiblity of allocated TTYs (the kern.ttys sysctl). Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
`bhyveload -h <host-path>` may be used to grant loader access to the <host-path> directory tree on the host. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
EBM Technologies RISWEB's specific URL path is not properly controlled by permission, allowing attackers to browse specific pages and query sensitive data without login. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Mastodon is a free, open-source social network server based on ActivityPub. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity.
When NGINX Plus or NGINX OSS are configured to use the HTTP/3 QUIC module, undisclosed requests can cause NGINX worker processes to terminate. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Undisclosed requests can cause the Traffic Management Microkernel (TMM) to terminate. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
When HTTP/2 is configured on BIG-IP or BIG-IP Next SPK systems, undisclosed responses can cause the Traffic Management Microkernel (TMM) to terminate. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability exists in BIG-IP Next CNF and SPK systems that may allow access to undisclosed sensitive files. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
When BIG-IP is deployed in high availability (HA) and an iControl REST API token is updated, the change does not sync to the peer device. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.2), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
When an Advanced WAF/ASM security policy and a Websockets profile are configured on a virtual server, undisclosed traffic can cause the Traffic Management Microkernel (TMM) process to terminate. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
When a BIG-IP ASM/Advanced WAF security policy is configured on a virtual server, undisclosed requests can cause an increase in memory resource utilization. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper access control vulnerability exists in Energy Management Controller with Cloud Services JH-RVB1 /JH-RV11 Ver.B0.1.9.1 and earlier, which may allow a network-adjacent unauthenticated attacker. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Digdag is an open source tool that to build, run, schedule, and monitor complex pipelines of tasks across various platforms. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Path Traversal vulnerability could allow attackers to access files and directories outside the intended path.
Business logic error in some Zoom clients may allow an authenticated user to conduct information disclosure via network access. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper input validation in Zoom Desktop Client for Windows, Zoom VDI Client for Windows, and Zoom Meeting SDK for Windows may allow an authenticated user to conduct a disclosure of information via. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper input validation in Zoom Desktop Client for Windows, Zoom VDI Client for Windows, and Zoom Meeting SDK for Windows may allow an authenticated user to conduct a disclosure of information via. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
TYPO3 is an open source PHP based web content management system released under the GNU GPL. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
TYPO3 is an open source PHP based web content management system released under the GNU GPL. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
TYPO3 is an open source PHP based web content management system released under the GNU GPL. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
TYPO3 is an open source PHP based web content management system released under the GNU GPL. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Windows Printing Service Spoofing Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Microsoft Message Queuing (MSMQ) Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0).
Microsoft Azure Kubernetes Service Confidential Container Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.0), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
Microsoft Azure File Sync Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3).
Microsoft Dynamics Business Central/NAV Information Disclosure Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.0), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. This Exposure of Sensitive Information vulnerability could allow attackers to access sensitive data that should not be disclosed.
Windows DNS Information Disclosure Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Microsoft Teams for Android Information Disclosure Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.0), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Windows Kernel Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0).
Microsoft Message Queuing (MSMQ) Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0).
Win32k Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Windows Network Address Translation (NAT) Denial of Service Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. This Out-of-bounds Read vulnerability could allow attackers to read data from memory outside the intended buffer boundaries.
Windows Network Address Translation (NAT) Denial of Service Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Out-of-bounds Read vulnerability could allow attackers to read data from memory outside the intended buffer boundaries.
Windows Kernel Information Disclosure Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.6), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Windows Kernel Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Azure Connected Machine Agent Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Protection Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Trusted Compute Base Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.1).
Skype for Business Information Disclosure Vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Vba32 Antivirus v3.36.0 is vulnerable to an Arbitrary Memory Read vulnerability. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Vba32 Antivirus v3.36.0 is vulnerable to an Arbitrary Memory Read vulnerability by triggering the 0x22201B, 0x22201F, 0x222023, 0x222027 ,0x22202B, 0x22202F, 0x22203F, 0x222057 and 0x22205B IOCTL. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The attacker may exploit a path traversal vulnerability leading to information disclosure. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Twister Antivirus v8.17 is vulnerable to an Out-of-bounds Read vulnerability by triggering the 0x801120B8 IOCTL code of the filmfd.sys driver. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An unauthenticated attacker can send a ping request from one network to another through an error in the origin verification even though the ports are separated by VLAN. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability has been identified in Simcenter Femap (All versions < V2306.0000). Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability has been identified in Simcenter Femap (All versions < V2401.0000), Simcenter Femap (All versions < V2306.0001). Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability has been identified in Tecnomatix Plant Simulation V2201 (All versions < V2201.0012), Tecnomatix Plant Simulation V2302 (All versions < V2302.0006). Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Out-of-bounds Read vulnerability could allow attackers to read data from memory outside the intended buffer boundaries.
Due to improper validation of certificate in SAP Cloud Connector - version 2.0, attacker can impersonate the genuine servers to interact with SCC breaking the mutual authentication. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
SAP NetWeaver Application Server (ABAP) - versions KERNEL 7.53, KERNEL 7.54, KERNEL 7.77, KERNEL 7.85, KERNEL 7.89, KERNEL 7.93, KERNEL 7.94, KRNL64UC 7.53, under certain conditions, allows an. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information in Gambio 4.9.2.0 allows attackers to obtain sensitive information via error-handler.log.json and legacy-error-handler.log.txt under the webroot. Rated low severity (CVSS 2.7), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Pixelfed is an open source photo sharing platform. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Dell Unity, version(s) 5.3 and prior, contain(s) an Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A hidden interface in Motorola CX2L Router firmware v1.0.1 leaks information regarding the SystemWizardStatus component via sending a crafted request to device_web_ip. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The EazyDocs WordPress plugin before 2.4.0 re-introduced CVE-2023-6029 (https://wpscan.com/vulnerability/7a0aaf85-8130-4fd7-8f09-f8edc929597e/) in 2.3.8, allowing any authenticated users, such as. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
In the Linux kernel before 6.6.7, an untrusted VMM can trigger int80 syscall handling at any given point. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
A memory leak flaw was found in the UBI driver in drivers/mtd/ubi/attach.c in the Linux kernel through 6.7.4 for UBI_IOCATT, because kobj->name is not released. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
ExpressVPN before 12.73.0 on Windows, when split tunneling is used, sends DNS requests according to the Windows configuration (e.g., sends them to DNS servers operated by the user's ISP instead of to. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In Rhonabwy through 1.1.13, HMAC signature verification uses a strcmp function that is vulnerable to side-channel attacks, because it stops the comparison when the first difference is spotted in the. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
A vulnerability was found in Netgear R7000 1.0.11.136_10.2.120 and classified as problematic. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
A vulnerability has been found in Netgear R7000 1.0.11.136_10.2.120 and classified as problematic. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
IBM Storage Defender - Resiliency Service 2.0 stores user credentials in plain clear text which can be read by a local user. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
IBM Semeru Runtime 8.0.302.0 through 8.0.392.0, 11.0.12.0 through 11.0.21.0, 17.0.1.0 - 17.0.9.0, and 21.0.1.0 uses weaker than expected cryptographic algorithms that could allow an attacker to. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability was found in Linksys WRT54GL 4.30.18. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
A vulnerability was found in Linksys WRT54GL 4.30.18. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
nonebot2 is a cross-platform Python asynchronous chatbot framework written in Python. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Exposure of Sensitive Information vulnerability could allow attackers to access sensitive data that should not be disclosed.
A vulnerability was found in Linksys WRT54GL 4.30.18 and classified as problematic. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
imlib2 v1.9.1 was discovered to mishandle memory allocation in the function init_imlib_fonts(). Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
An issue in the HuginBase::ImageVariable<double>::linkWith function of Hugin v2022.0.0 allows attackers to cause a heap-use-after-free via parsing a crafted image. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
In PQUIC before 5bde5bb, retention of unused initial encryption keys allows attackers to disrupt a connection with a PSK configuration by sending a CONNECTION_CLOSE frame that is encrypted via the. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
In LiteSpeed QUIC (LSQUIC) Library before 4.0.4, DCID validation is mishandled. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
An issue was discovered in MISP before 2.4.184. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
The cause of vulnerability is improper validation of form input field “Name” on Graph page in Items section. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Micronaut Framework is a modern, JVM-based, full stack Java framework designed for building modular, easily testable JVM applications with support for Java, Kotlin and the Groovy language. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
IBM i Access Client Solutions (ACS) 1.1.2 through 1.1.4 and 1.1.4.3 through 1.1.9.4 is vulnerable to NT LAN Manager (NTLM) hash disclosure by an attacker modifying UNC capable paths within ACS. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
DIRAC is a distributed resource framework. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Exposure of Sensitive Information vulnerability could allow attackers to access sensitive data that should not be disclosed.
The HTTP PUT and DELETE methods are enabled in the Plone official Docker version 5.2.13 (5221), allowing unauthenticated attackers to execute dangerous actions such as uploading files to the server. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
The Binance Trust Wallet app for iOS in commit 3cd6e8f647fbba8b5d8844fcd144365a086b629f, git tag 0.0.4 misuses the trezor-crypto library and consequently generates mnemonic words for which the device. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
HashiCorp Nomad and Nomad Enterprise 1.5.13 up to 1.6.6, and 1.7.3 template renderer is vulnerable to arbitrary file write on the host as the Nomad client user through symlink attacks. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Under certain circumstances IQ Panel4 and IQ4 Hub panel software prior to version 4.4.2 could allow unauthorized access to settings. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An issue in the component /cgi-bin/GetJsonValue.cgi of Cellinx NVT Web Server 5.0.0.014 allows attackers to leak configuration information via a crafted POST request. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature vulnerability in Snow Software Inventory Agent on Unix allows File Manipulation through Snow Update Packages.3.1. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature vulnerability in Snow Software Inventory Agent on MacOS, Snow Software Inventory Agent on Windows, Snow Software Inventory Agent on Linux allows File. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.