CVE-2025-12548
Published: 13 January 2026
Summary
CVE-2025-12548 is a critical-severity Missing Authentication for Critical Function (CWE-306) vulnerability. Its CVSS base score is 9.0 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation of Remote Services (T1210); ranked in the top 2.3% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 AC-3 (Access Enforcement) and SC-7 (Boundary Protection).
Threat & Defense at a Glance
Threat & Defense Details
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5)AI
Directly remediates the authentication flaw in che-machine-exec by applying vendor patches such as Red Hat errata RHSA-2025:22620.
Monitors and controls communications at external interfaces to block unauthorized network access to the exposed TCP port 3333 JSON-RPC/WebSocket API.
Enforces approved access authorizations to prevent unauthenticated remote command execution and secret exfiltration from Developer Workspace containers.
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI
Why these techniques?
Vulnerability enables remote exploitation of a service for arbitrary Unix shell command execution (T1210, T1059.004) and direct exfiltration of credentials in files including private SSH keys and tokens (T1552.001, T1552.004).
NVD Description
A flaw was found in Eclipse Che che-machine-exec. This vulnerability allows unauthenticated remote arbitrary command execution and secret exfiltration (SSH keys, tokens, etc.) from other users' Developer Workspace containers, via an unauthenticated JSON-RPC / websocket API exposed on TCP port…
more
3333.
Deeper analysisAI
CVE-2025-12548 is a vulnerability in the Eclipse Che che-machine-exec component, enabling unauthenticated remote arbitrary command execution and secret exfiltration, including SSH keys and tokens, from other users' Developer Workspace containers. The issue stems from an unauthenticated JSON-RPC/WebSocket API exposed on TCP port 3333. It is associated with CWE-306 (Missing Authentication for Critical Function) and carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.0 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H). The vulnerability was published on 2026-01-13.
The attack requires low privileges (PR:L), is network-accessible with low complexity and user interaction, and changes scope upon exploitation. An attacker can achieve high-impact confidentiality, integrity, and availability effects by executing arbitrary commands and exfiltrating sensitive data from other users' workspaces via the exposed API.
Red Hat has issued patches via errata RHSA-2025:22620, RHSA-2025:22623, and RHSA-2025:22652. Further details on the vulnerability and mitigation are available in the Red Hat security advisory at https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-12548 and Bugzilla entry https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2408850.
Details
- CWE(s)