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 (69475)
This issue was addressed with a new entitlement. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A user interface issue was addressed. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved restrictions. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A privacy issue existed in the handling of Contact cards. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.6), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.6), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The issue was addressed with additional permissions checks. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Description: A permissions issue was addressed with improved validation. Rated low severity (CVSS 2.4), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An issue with app access to camera metadata was addressed with improved logic. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A cross-origin issue in the IndexDB API was addressed with improved input validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A validation issue was addressed with improved input sanitization. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An issue existed within the path validation logic for symlinks. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A permissions issue was addressed with improved validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An information disclosure issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
One of the API in Mattermost version 6.3.0 and earlier fails to properly protect the permissions, which allows the system administrators to combine the two distinct privileges/capabilities in a way. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Forge (also called `node-forge`) is a native implementation of Transport Layer Security in JavaScript. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Forge (also called `node-forge`) is a native implementation of Transport Layer Security in JavaScript. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Forge (also called `node-forge`) is a native implementation of Transport Layer Security in JavaScript. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Automotive Grade Linux Kooky Koi 11.0.0, 11.0.1, 11.0.2, 11.0.3, 11.0.4, and 11.0.5 is affected by Incorrect Access Control in usr/bin/afb-daemon. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Memory leak in icmp6 implementation in Linux Kernel 5.13+ allows a remote attacker to DoS a host by making it go out-of-memory via icmp6 packets of type 130 or 131. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
In Paramiko before 2.10.1, a race condition (between creation and chmod) in the write_private_key_file function could allow unauthorized information disclosure. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
`gradio` is an open source framework for building interactive machine learning models and demos. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
WPS Presentation 11.8.0.5745 insecurely load d3dx9_41.dll when opening .pps files('current directory type' DLL loading). Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
`@chainsafe/libp2p-noise` contains TypeScript implementation of noise protocol, an encryption protocol used in libp2p. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
Anaconda Anaconda3 (Anaconda Distribution) through 2021.11.0.0 and Miniconda3 through 4.11.0.0 can create a world-writable directory under %PROGRAMDATA% and place that directory into the system PATH. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Waitress is a Web Server Gateway Interface server for Python 2 and 3. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This HTTP Request/Response Smuggling vulnerability could allow attackers to manipulate HTTP request interpretation between frontend and backend servers.
The package set-in before 2.0.3 are vulnerable to Prototype Pollution via the setIn method, as it allows an attacker to merge object prototypes into it. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
The package libnested before 1.5.2 are vulnerable to Prototype Pollution via the set function in index.js. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
The package bodymen from 0.0.0 are vulnerable to Prototype Pollution via the handler function which could be tricked into adding or modifying properties of Object.prototype using a __proto__ payload. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Whale browser before 3.12.129.18 allowed extensions to replace JavaScript files of the HWP viewer website which could access to local HWP files. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Whale Bridge, a default extension in Whale browser before 3.12.129.18, allowed to receive any SendMessage request from the content script itself that could lead to controlling Whale Bridge if the. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Web Request API in Whale browser before 3.12.129.18 allowed to deny access to the extension store or redirect to any URL when users access the store. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
FISCO-BCOS release-3.0.0-rc2 was discovered to contain an issue where a malicious node, via a malicious viewchange packet, will cause normal nodes to change view excessively and stop generating. 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.
wire-server provides back end services for Wire, an open source messenger. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
This affects the package node-ipc from 10.1.1 and before 10.1.3. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
A flaw was found in the vhost-vsock device of QEMU. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.2), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
A flaw was found in the virtio-net device of QEMU. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
When connecting to a certain port Axeda agent (All versions) and Axeda Desktop Server for Windows (All versions) supplies the event log of the specific service. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
SnapCenter versions prior to 4.5 are susceptible to a vulnerability which could allow a local authenticated attacker to discover plaintext HANA credentials. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Zulip is an open source group chat application. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required.
A Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource vulnerability in the sudoers configuration in cscreen of openSUSE Factory allows any local users to gain the privileges of the tty and dialout. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
A Insecure Temporary File vulnerability in cscreen of openSUSE Factory allows local attackers to cause DoS for cscreen and a system DoS for non-default systems. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Gradle Enterprise before 2021.4.3 relies on cleartext data transmission in some situations. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In drivers/usb/gadget/udc/udc-xilinx.c in the Linux kernel before 5.16.12, the endpoint index is not validated and might be manipulated by the host for out-of-array access. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity.
CuppaCMS v1.0 was discovered to contain an arbitrary file read via the copy function. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
CuppaCMS v1.0 was discovered to contain a local file inclusion via the url parameter in /alerts/alertConfigField.php. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
CuppaCMS v1.0 was discovered to contain a local file inclusion via the url parameter in /alerts/alertLightbox.php. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Jenkins incapptic connect uploader Plugin 1.15 and earlier stores tokens unencrypted in job config.xml files on the Jenkins controller where they can be viewed by users with Extended Read permission,. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Jenkins Vmware vRealize CodeStream Plugin 1.2 and earlier stores passwords unencrypted in job config.xml files on the Jenkins controller where they can be viewed by users with Extended Read. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Jenkins dbCharts Plugin 0.5.2 and earlier stores JDBC connection passwords unencrypted in its global configuration file on the Jenkins controller where they can be viewed by users with access to the. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Jenkins GitLab Authentication Plugin 1.13 and earlier stores the GitLab client secret unencrypted in the global config.xml file on the Jenkins controller where it can be viewed by users with access. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Jenkins Parameterized Trigger Plugin 2.43 and earlier captures environment variables passed to builds triggered using Jenkins Parameterized Trigger Plugin, including password parameter values, in. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Apache CloudStack prior to 4.16.1.0 used insecure random number generation for project invitation tokens. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Bareos is open source software for backup, archiving, and recovery of data for operating systems. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor in GitHub repository httpie/httpie prior to 3.1.0. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
sysend.js is a library that allows a user to send messages between pages that are open in the same browser. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Sylius is an open source eCommerce platform. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.2), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Sylius is an open source eCommerce platform. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Rambus SafeZone Basic Crypto Module before 10.4.0, as used in certain Fujifilm (formerly Fuji Xerox) devices before 2022-03-01, Canon imagePROGRAF and imageRUNNER devices through 2022-03-14, and. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
IBM Big SQL on IBM Cloud Pak for Data 7.1.0, 7.1.1, 7.2.0, and 7.2.3 could allow an authenticated user with appropriate permissions to obtain sensitive information by bypassing data masking rules. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A Direct Object Access vulnerability in SmarterTools SmarterTrack leads to information disclosure This issue affects: SmarterTools SmarterTrack 100.0.8019.14010. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Apache HTTP Server 2.4.52 and earlier fails to close inbound connection when errors are encountered discarding the request body, exposing the server to HTTP Request Smuggling. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This HTTP Request/Response Smuggling vulnerability could allow attackers to manipulate HTTP request interpretation between frontend and backend servers.
Mirametrix Glance before 5.1.1.42207 (released on 2018-08-30) allows a local attacker to elevate privileges. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Certain Arm Cortex and Neoverse processors through 2022-03-08 do not properly restrict cache speculation, aka Spectre-BHB. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.6).
An issue was discovered in the Linux kernel before 5.16.12. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
The package url-js before 2.1.0 are vulnerable to Improper Input Validation due to improper parsing, which makes it is possible for the hostname to be spoofed. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Adobe Photoshop versions 23.1.1 (and earlier) and 22.5.5 (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.
Potential vulnerabilities have been identified in the system BIOS of certain HP PC products which may allow Escalation of Privilege, Arbitrary Code Execution, Unauthorized Code Execution, Denial of. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.2), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Potential vulnerabilities have been identified in the system BIOS of certain HP PC products which may allow Escalation of Privilege, Arbitrary Code Execution, Unauthorized Code Execution, Denial of. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.2), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.