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 (69570)
Certain NETGEAR smart switches are affected by a remote admin password change by an unauthenticated attacker via the (disabled by default) /sqfs/bin/sccd daemon, which fails to check authentication. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
The Translate plugin 6.1.x through 6.3.x before 6.3.0.72 for ONLYOFFICE Document Server lacks escape calls for the msg.data and text fields. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
An issue was discovered in views/list.py in GNU Mailman Postorius before 1.3.5. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Zoho ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus 6111 and prior is vulnerable to linked applications takeover. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
merge is vulnerable to Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution'). Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
Pomerium is an open source identity-aware access proxy. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
WordPress is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable. No vendor patch available.
Pomerium is an open source identity-aware access proxy. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.6), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
BAB TECHNOLOGIE GmbH eibPort V3 prior version 3.9.1 allow the user to set a weak password because the strength is shown in configuration tool, but finally not enforced. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An improper scheme check vulnerability in Samsung Themes prior to version 5.2.01 allows attackers to perform Man-in-the-middle attack. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0). No vendor patch available.
An improper file management vulnerability in SamsungCapture prior to version 4.8.02 allows sensitive information leak. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An improper input validation vulnerability in DSP driver prior to SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 allows local attackers to get a limited kernel memory information. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
OOB read vulnerability in libswmfextractor.so library prior to SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 allows attackers to execute memcpy at arbitrary address via forged wmf file. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
OOB read vulnerability in libsaviextractor.so library prior to SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 allows attackers to access arbitrary address through pointer via forged avi file. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
OOB read vulnerability in libsaacextractor.so library prior to SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 allows attackers to execute remote DoS via forged aac file. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Some improper access control in Bluetooth APIs prior to SMR Sep-2021 Release 1 allows untrusted application to get Bluetooth information. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
BAB TECHNOLOGIE GmbH eibPort V3. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.2), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
BAB TECHNOLOGIE GmbH eibPort V3 prior version 3.9.1 allow unauthenticated attackers access to /tmp path which contains some sensitive data (e.g. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
BAB TECHNOLOGIE GmbH eibPort V3 prior version 3.9.1 allow unauthenticated attackers to access uncontrolled the login service at /webif/SecurityModule in a brute force attack. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Fuel CMS 1.5.0 has a brute force vulnerability in fuel/modules/fuel/controllers/Login.php. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
The variable import endpoint was not protected by authentication in Airflow >=2.0.0, <2.1.3. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An arbitrary file download and execution vulnerability was found in the HShell.dll of handysoft Co., Ltd groupware ActiveX module. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Triggering an error page of the import process in Yakamara Media Redaxo CMS version 5.12.1 allows an authenticated CMS user has to alternate the files of a vaild file backup. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Some component in Dubbo will try to print the formated string of the input arguments, which will possibly cause RCE for a maliciously customized bean with special toString method. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Possible buffer over read due to lack of alignment between map or unmap length of IPA SMMU and WLAN SMMU in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT,. 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.
Possible use-after-free due to lack of validation for the rule count in filter table in IPA driver in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.7), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Use After Free vulnerability could allow attackers to access freed memory to execute arbitrary code or crash the application.
Improper handling of ASB-C broadcast packets with crafted opcode in LMP can lead to uncontrolled resource consumption in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper Access Control when ACL link encryption is failed and ACL link is not disconnected during reconnection with paired device in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity,. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
Improper handling of ASB-U packet with L2CAP channel ID by slave host can lead to interference with piconet in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Possible buffer over read occurs due to lack of length check of request buffer in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer IOT, Snapdragon Industrial IOT,. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Possible out of bound read due to lack of length check of data while parsing the beacon or probe response in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer. 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.
Possible buffer over read issue due to improper length check on WPA IE string sent by peer in Snapdragon Auto, Snapdragon Compute, Snapdragon Connectivity, Snapdragon Consumer Electronics. 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.
Multiple vulnerabilities in Cisco BroadWorks CommPilot Application Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to delete arbitrary user accounts or gain elevated privileges on an affected. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Multiple vulnerabilities in Cisco BroadWorks CommPilot Application Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to delete arbitrary user accounts or gain elevated privileges on an affected. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.2), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability in the Cisco IOS XR Software CLI could allow an authenticated, local attacker to view more information than their privileges allow. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability in the SSH Server process of Cisco IOS XR Software could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to overwrite and read arbitrary files on the local device. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability in the Layer 2 punt code of Cisco IOS XR Software running on Cisco ASR 9000 Series Aggregation Services Routers could allow an unauthenticated, adjacent attacker to cause the affected. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.4), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Emby Server is a personal media server with apps on many devices. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.6), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
The GD Graphics Library (aka LibGD) through 2.3.2 has an out-of-bounds read because of the lack of certain gdGetBuf and gdPutBuf return value checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
LINE client for iOS 10.21.3 and before allows address bar spoofing due to inappropriate address handling. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An insufficient session expiration vulnerability exists in the "Fish | Hunt FL" iOS app version 3.8.0 and earlier, which allows a remote attacker to reuse, spoof, or steal other user and admin. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Adobe Media Encoder version 15.1 (and earlier) is affected by an Out-of-bounds Read vulnerability when parsing a specially crafted file. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Magento versions 2.4.2 (and earlier), 2.4.1-p1 (and earlier) and 2.3.6-p1 (and earlier) are vulnerable to an Information Disclosure vulnerability when uploading a modified png file to a product. Rated low severity (CVSS 2.7), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Backup file without encryption vulnerability is found in Hitachi ABB Power Grids System Data Manager - SDM600 allows attacker to gain access to sensitive information. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A local user may be able to cause unexpected system termination or read kernel memory. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A race condition was addressed with improved state handling. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.3), this vulnerability is no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), 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 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Processing a maliciously crafted image may lead to disclosure of user information. 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 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 medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A window management issue was addressed with improved state management. 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 medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An attacker in a privileged network position may be able to misrepresent application state. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An information disclosure issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An information disclosure issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An information disclosure issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Multiple issues in apache were addressed by updating apache to version 2.4.46. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A malicious application may be able to break out of its sandbox. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), 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 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 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 restrictions. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A validation issue existed in the handling of symlinks. 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 high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved environment sanitization. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), 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 no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An access issue was addressed with improved access restrictions. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), 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 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A validation issue was addressed with improved logic. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An access issue was addressed with improved memory management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed by removing additional entitlements. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A race condition was addressed with additional validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0), this vulnerability is no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 3003.3. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.4).
An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 3003.3. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable.
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 input validation. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An integer overflow was addressed with improved input validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved input validation. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A double free issue was addressed with improved memory management. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An API issue in Accessibility TCC permissions 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 logic issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, 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 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An issue obscuring passwords in screenshots was addressed with improved logic. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.0), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Description: A person with physical access may be able to access contacts. Rated low severity (CVSS 2.4), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.