Summary
Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow an attacker to be granted direct SYSTEM-level code execution on the host operating system running the Ignition Gateway service on Windows systems.
The following versions of Inductive Automation Ignition are affected:
- Ignition (CVE-2025-13911)
| CVSS | Vendor | Equipment | Vulnerabilities |
|---|---|---|---|
| v3 6.4 | Inductive Automation | Inductive Automation Ignition | Execution with Unnecessary Privileges |
Background
- Critical Infrastructure Sectors: Critical Manufacturing, Energy, Information Technology
- Countries/Areas Deployed: Worldwide
- Company Headquarters Location: United States
Vulnerabilities
CVE-2025-13911
The vulnerability affects Ignition SCADA applications where Python scripting is utilized for automation purposes. The vulnerability arises from the absence of proper security controls that restrict which Python libraries can be imported and executed within the scripting environment. The core issue lies in the Ignition service account having system permissions beyond what an Ignition privileged user requires. When an authenticated administrator uploads a malicious project file containing Python scripts with bind shell capabilities, the application executes these scripts with the same privileges as the Ignition Gateway process, which typically runs with SYSTEM-level permissions on Windows. Alternative code execution patterns could lead to similar results.
Affected Products
Inductive Automation Ignition
Inductive Automation
Inductive Automation Ignition: 8.1.x|8.3.x
known_affected
Remediations
Mitigation
Inductive Automation encourages users to do the following in order to reduce the risk of this vulnerability:
Mitigation
For more information and updates, users should refer to Inductive Automation's Trust Portal.
Relevant CWE: CWE-250 Execution with Unnecessary Privileges
Metrics
| CVSS Version | Base Score | Base Severity | Vector String |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | 6.4 | MEDIUM | CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
Acknowledgments
- Momen Eldawakhly of Samurai Digital Security Ltd reported this vulnerability to CISA
Legal Notice and Terms of Use
This product is provided subject to this Notification (https://www.cisa.gov/notification) and this Privacy & Use policy (https://www.cisa.gov/privacy-policy).
Recommended Practices
CISA recommends users take defensive measures to minimize the risk of exploitation of this vulnerability, such as:
Minimize network exposure for all control system devices and/or systems, ensuring they are not accessible from the Internet.
Locate control system networks and remote devices behind firewalls and isolating them from business networks.
When remote access is required, use more secure methods, such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), recognizing VPNs may have vulnerabilities and should be updated to the most current version available. Also recognize VPN is only as secure as the connected devices.
CISA reminds organizations to perform proper impact analysis and risk assessment prior to deploying defensive measures.
CISA also provides a section for control systems security recommended practices on the ICS webpage on cisa.gov/ics. Several CISA products detailing cyber defense best practices are available for reading and download, including Improving Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity with Defense-in-Depth Strategies.
CISA encourages organizations to implement recommended cybersecurity strategies for proactive defense of ICS assets.
Additional mitigation guidance and recommended practices are publicly available on the ICS webpage at cisa.gov/ics in the technical information paper, ICS-TIP-12-146-01B--Targeted Cyber Intrusion Detection and Mitigation Strategies.
Organizations observing suspected malicious activity should follow established internal procedures and report findings to CISA for tracking and correlation against other incidents.
CISA also recommends users take the following measures to protect themselves from social engineering attacks:
Do not click web links or open attachments in unsolicited email messages.
Refer to Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams for more information on avoiding email scams.
Refer to Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks for more information on social engineering attacks.
No known public exploitation specifically targeting this vulnerability has been reported to CISA at this time. This vulnerability has a high attack complexity.
Revision History
- Initial Release Date: 2025-12-18
| Date | Revision | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-12-18 | 1 | Initial Publication |