Overview
OpenPrinting CUPS, an open-source printing system in use by Linux and Unix-like operating systems, has been identified with a significant vulnerability in versions 2.4.12 and earlier. This vulnerability, designated as CVE-2025-58060, allows for potential authentication bypass when certain configurations are present. This vulnerability holds considerable weight due to the widespread usage of OpenPrinting CUPS in Unix-like systems, leading to a potential system compromise or data leakage.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-58060
Severity: High (8.0 CVSS score)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: System compromise or data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
OpenPrinting CUPS | 2.4.12 and earlier
How the Exploit Works
The vulnerability in question arises when the `AuthType` in the OpenPrinting CUPS configuration is set to anything other than `Basic`. If an HTTP request contains an `Authorization: Basic …` header, the password is not verified and the system assumes valid authentication. This allows malicious actors to bypass normal authentication procedures, potentially gaining unauthorized access to the system or causing data leakage.
Conceptual Example Code
A conceptual example of how this vulnerability could be exploited may look like the following HTTP request:
GET /printers HTTP/1.1
Host: vulnerable-system.example.com
Authorization: Basic aW52YWxpZDp1c2VybmFtZQ==In this example, `aW52YWxpZDp1c2VybmFtZQ==` is a Base64 encoded string representing `invalid:username`. Despite the username being invalid, due to the vulnerability, the system does not verify the password and grants access.
Mitigation and Prevention
The developer of OpenPrinting CUPS has released a patch in version 2.4.13 to address this vulnerability. Users are urged to update to the latest version as soon as possible. In the interim, a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) could be used to detect and prevent exploitation of this vulnerability. However, these are temporary measures and should not replace a proper patching strategy.
