Kaba exos 9300: Reliance on Security Through Obscurity
CVE-2025-59093 is a high-severity reliance on security through obscurity vulnerability in Kaba exos 9300 from Dormakaba, with a CVSS 4.0 base score of 8.5 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. Affected Kaba exos 9300 versions: All versions, manual mitigation needed!. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.18% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Check which version of Kaba exos 9300 you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
- Read the advisory on dormakabagroup.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dormakaba | Kaba exos 9300 | All versions, manual mitigation needed! | Not stated |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Attack requirements
- NoneThe attack does not depend on a particular deployment or configuration.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Confidentiality (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of confidentiality on the vulnerable system.
- Integrity (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of integrity on the vulnerable system.
- Availability (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of availability on the vulnerable system.
- Confidentiality (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of confidentiality on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
- Integrity (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of integrity on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
- Availability (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of availability on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X. Scored by CNA.
Official description
Exos 9300 instances are using a randomly generated database password to connect to the configured MSSQL server. The password is derived from static random values, which are concatenated to the hostname and a random string that can be read by every user from the registry. This allows an attacker to derive the database password and get authenticated access to the central exos 9300 database as the user Exos9300Common. The user has the roles ExosDialog and ExosDialogDotNet assigned, which are able to read most tables of the database as well as update and insert into many tables.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Reliance on Security Through Obscurity
The product uses a protection mechanism whose strength depends heavily on its obscurity, such that knowledge of its algorithms or key data is sufficient to defeat the mechanism.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Always consider whether knowledge of your code or design is sufficient to break it. Reverse engineering is a highly successful discipline, and financially feasible for motivated adversaries. Black-box techniques are established for binary analysis of executables that use obfuscation, runtime analysis of proprietary protocols, inferring file formats, and others.
- When available, use publicly-vetted algorithms and procedures, as these are more likely to undergo more extensive security analysis and testing. This is especially the case with encryption and authentication.
- Obscurity can be one small part of defense in depth, since it can create more work for an attacker; however, it is a significant risk if used as the primary means of protection.
More Reliance on Security Through Obscurity vulnerabilities (CWE-656)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Other references
Other vulnerabilities in Kaba exos 9300
- 8.4 High severity
- 8.7 High severity
- 9.3 Critical severity
- 9.3 Critical severity
Recent Reliance on Security Through Obscurity vulnerabilities
- 9.2 Critical severity
- 7.2 High severity
Spotted an error? Tell us.