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 (69732)
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists when the .NET Framework improperly handles objects in memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.7).
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when the Windows Backup Service improperly handles file operations.</p> <p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would first have to gain. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in the way that Microsoft Office Click-to-Run (C2R) AppVLP handles certain files. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0), this vulnerability is no authentication required.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in the way that Microsoft Office Click-to-Run (C2R) AppVLP handles certain files. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity.
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists in Text Services Framework when it fails to properly handle objects in memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists when the Windows Enterprise App Management Service improperly handles certain file operations. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists in the way that the Windows Graphics Device Interface Plus (GDI+) handles objects in memory, allowing an attacker to retrieve information from a. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when the Windows Backup Service improperly handles file operations.</p> <p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would first have to gain. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows Error Reporting (WER) when WER handles and executes files. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in Windows Error Reporting (WER) when WER handles and executes files. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists when the Windows kernel improperly initializes objects in memory.</p> <p>To exploit this vulnerability, an authenticated attacker could run a. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.0), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when the Windows Event System improperly handles objects in memory.</p> <p>To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would first have to gain. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.0).
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists when NetBIOS over TCP (NBT) Extensions (NetBT) improperly handle objects in memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists in Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) when an attacker connects to the target system using RDP and sends specially crafted requests. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in the way that the Windows kernel image handles objects in memory. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An information disclosure vulnerability exists when the Windows KernelStream improperly handles objects in memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists in the way that the Windows Network Connections Service handles objects in memory. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
<p>An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when Microsoft Windows improperly handles reparse points. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
An issue was discovered in the Linux kernel before 5.8.15. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
On Juniper Networks SRX Series and NFX Series, a local authenticated user with access to the shell may obtain the Web API service private key that is used to provide encrypted communication between. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
When configuring stateless firewall filters in Juniper Networks EX4600 and QFX 5000 Series devices using Virtual Extensible LAN protocol (VXLAN), the discard action will fail to discard traffic under. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
On Juniper Networks PTX and QFX Series devices with packet sampling configured using tunnel-observation mpls-over-udp, sampling of a malformed packet can cause the Kernel Routing Table (KRT) queue to. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The Juniper Device Manager (JDM) container, used by the disaggregated Junos OS architecture on Juniper Networks NFX350 Series devices, stores password hashes in the world-readable file /etc/passwd. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.3). No vendor patch available.
In the client in Overwolf 0.149.2.30, a channel can be accessed or influenced by an actor that is not an endpoint. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
Dell EMC NetWorker versions prior to 19.3.0.2 contain an incorrect privilege assignment vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, 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 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 memory initialization issue was addressed with improved memory handling. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A lock screen issue allowed access to messages on a locked device. Rated low severity (CVSS 2.4), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved checks. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An issue existed in the handling of environment variables. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An authorization issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), 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 critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A URL Unicode encoding issue was addressed with improved state management. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An access issue existed in Content Security Policy. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This issue was addressed with improved data protection. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A logic issue was addressed with improved restrictions. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), 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 5.9), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. 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.
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved input validation. 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 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 issue existed in the handling of iMessage tapbacks. 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 7.8), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
IBM Security Guardium Big Data Intelligence 1.0 (SonarG) uses weaker than expected cryptographic algorithms that could allow an attacker to decrypt highly sensitive information. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In Anuko Time Tracker before verion 1.19.23.5325, due to not properly filtered user input a CSV export of a report could contain cells that are treated as formulas by spreadsheet software (for. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. Public exploit code available.
In containerd (an industry-standard container runtime) before version 1.2.14 there is a credential leaking vulnerability. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. No vendor patch available.
Apereo CAS 5.3.x before 5.3.16, 6.x before 6.1.7.2, 6.2.x before 6.2.4, and 6.3.x before 6.3.0-RC4 mishandles secret keys with Google Authenticator for multifactor authentication. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
VMware Horizon Client for Windows (5.x before 5.5.0) contains a denial-of-service vulnerability due to a file system access control issue during install time. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
An issue was discovered in QEMU through 5.1.0. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In Amazon AWS Firecracker before 0.21.3, and 0.22.x before 0.22.1, the serial console buffer can grow its memory usage without limit when data is sent to the standard input. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Memory Leak vulnerability could allow attackers to exhaust available memory leading to denial of service.
A vulnerability has been identified in SIPORT MP (All versions < 3.2.1). Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Agent names that participates in a chat conversation are revealed in certain parts of the external interface as well as in chat transcriptions inside the tickets, when system is configured to mask. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A vulnerability has been identified in Desigo Insight (All versions). Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper Authorization vulnerability of Pepperl+Fuchs P+F Comtrol RocketLinx ES7510-XT, ES8509-XT, ES8510-XT, ES9528-XTv2, ES7506, ES7510, ES7528, ES8508, ES8508F, ES8510, ES8510-XTE,. 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.
An exploitable information disclosure vulnerability exists in the dev_read functionality of F2fs-Tools F2fs.Fsck 1.13. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
An exploitable information disclosure vulnerability exists in the init_node_manager functionality of F2fs-Tools F2fs.Fsck 1.12 and 1.13. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
An exploitable information disclosure vulnerability exists in the get_dnode_of_data functionality of F2fs-Tools F2fs.Fsck 1.13. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
A log information disclosure vulnerability in B&R GateManager 4260 and 9250 versions <9.0.20262 and GateManager 8250 versions <9.2.620236042 allows authenticated users to view log information. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The information disclosure vulnerability present in B&R GateManager 4260 and 9250 versions <9.0.20262 and GateManager 8250 versions <9.2.620236042 allows authenticated users to generate fake audit. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
An information disclosure vulnerability in B&R GateManager 4260 and 9250 versions <9.0.20262 and GateManager 8250 versions <9.2.620236042 allows authenticated users to view information of devices. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
The local file inclusion vulnerability present in B&R SiteManager versions <9.2.620236042 allows authenticated users to impact availability of SiteManager instances. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A local file inclusion vulnerability in B&R SiteManager versions <9.2.620236042 allows authenticated users to read sensitive files from SiteManager instances. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
This affects all versions of package com.mintegral.msdk:alphab. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.7), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Improper privilege assignment vulnerability in the installer McAfee Application and Change Control (MACC) prior to 8.3.2 allows local administrators to change or update the configuration settings via. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.2), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
User enumeration vulnerability can be exploited to get a list of user accounts and personal user information can be exposed in SAP NetWeaver Application Server ABAP (POWL test application) versions -. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.3), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
SAP Commerce Cloud, versions - 1808, 1811, 1905, 2005, exposes several web applications that maintain sessions with a user. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.6), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
A DLL search path vulnerability was reported in Lenovo Diagnostics prior to version 4.35.4 that could allow a user with local access to execute code on the system. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
Duo has identified and fixed an issue with the Duo Network Gateway (DNG) product in which some customer-provided SSL certificates and private keys were not excluded from logging. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.3).
In Open Enclave before version 0.12.0, an information disclosure vulnerability exists when an enclave application using the syscalls provided by the sockets.edl is loaded by a malicious host. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.8), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
IBM Security Access Manager Appliance 9.0.7 does not invalidate session after logout which could allow an authenticated user to impersonate another user on the system. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.4), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity.
Trend Micro Antivirus for Mac 2020 (Consumer) contains a vulnerability in the product that occurs when a webserver is started that implements an API with several properties that can be read and. Rated medium severity (CVSS 4.4), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
Trend Micro Antivirus for Mac 2020 (Consumer) has a vulnerability in a specific kernel extension where an attacker could supply a kernel pointer and leak several bytes of memory. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.0), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In constructImportFailureNotification of NotificationImportExportListener.java, there is a possible permissions bypass due to an unsafe PendingIntent. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In generateInfo of PackageInstallerSession.java, there is a possible leak of cross-profile URI data during app installation due to a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Missing Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to access resources or perform actions without proper authorization checks.
In various locations in SystemUI, there is a possible permission bypass due to an unsafe PendingIntent. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity.
In AudioFlinger::RecordThread::threadLoop of audioflinger/Threads.cpp, there is a possible non-silenced audio buffer due to a permissions bypass. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity.
In gatt_process_read_by_type_rsp of gatt_cl.cc, there is a possible out of bounds read due to a missing bounds check. 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.
In setProcessMemoryTrimLevel of ActivityManagerService.java, there is a missing permission check. Rated low severity (CVSS 3.3), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Missing Authorization vulnerability could allow attackers to access resources or perform actions without proper authorization checks.
In ~AACExtractor() of AACExtractor.cpp, there is a possible out of bounds write due to uninitialized data. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability could allow attackers to write data beyond allocated buffer boundaries leading to code execution or crashes.
In setNotification of SapServer.java, there is a possible permission bypass due to a PendingIntent error. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. This Incorrect Permission Assignment vulnerability could allow attackers to access resources due to misconfigured permissions.
In showDataRoamingNotification of NotificationMgr.java, there is a possible permission bypass due to an unsafe PendingIntent. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In updateMwi of NotificationMgr.java, there is a possible permission bypass due to a PendingIntent error. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In onWnmFrameReceived of PasspointManager.java, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In gatt_process_read_by_type_rsp of gatt_cl.cc, there is a possible out of bounds read due to a missing bounds check. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
There is a possible out of bounds read due to a missing bounds check.Product: AndroidVersions: Android SoCAndroid ID: A-163003156. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
There is a possible out of bounds read due to a missing bounds check.Product: AndroidVersions: Android SoCAndroid ID: A-163008256. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
There is a possible out of bounds read due to a missing bounds check.Product: AndroidVersions: Android SoCAndroid ID: A-162980705. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.1), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.
In getCarrierPrivilegeStatus of UiccAccessRule.java, there is a missing permission check. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.