CVE-2025-12680: Brocade SANnav Credential Disclosure Flaw

CVE-2025-12680 Overview

Brocade SANnav before version 2.4.0b contains a sensitive data exposure vulnerability where database passwords are logged in clear text on the standby SANnav server following a disaster recovery failover event. This vulnerability allows a remote authenticated attacker with administrative privileges to access database credentials by reading SANnav logs or supportsave files.

Critical Impact

Administrative attackers can extract cleartext database passwords from logs, potentially leading to unauthorized database access and lateral movement within the storage network infrastructure.

Affected Products

• Brocade SANnav versions prior to 2.4.0b

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-02 - CVE CVE-2025-12680 published to NVD
• 2026-02-03 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-12680

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-256 (Plaintext Storage of a Password), representing a fundamental security weakness in credential management. The issue manifests specifically during disaster recovery failover scenarios in Brocade SANnav storage area network management software.

When a failover event occurs, the SANnav system logs database credentials in plaintext rather than using secure credential handling mechanisms. This logging behavior exposes sensitive authentication material to anyone with access to the log files or supportsave diagnostic bundles.

The attack requires local access to the system and administrative privileges, combined with user interaction, which limits the exploitability scope. However, the potential impact extends beyond the immediate confidentiality breach—compromised database credentials could enable attackers to access sensitive storage network configuration data and potentially pivot to other systems.

Root Cause

The root cause is improper handling of sensitive credential information during the disaster recovery failover process. The SANnav application fails to sanitize or mask database passwords before writing them to log files on the standby server. This represents a violation of secure coding practices where credentials should never be logged in plaintext under any circumstances.

Attack Vector

The attack vector requires an authenticated attacker with administrative privileges to access the SANnav server. The attacker must either:

1. Directly access the SANnav log files on the standby server after a disaster recovery failover has occurred
2. Obtain access to supportsave diagnostic bundles which contain the affected log files

Once the attacker has access to these files, they can search for and extract the plaintext database password. This credential can then be used to directly access the SANnav database, potentially exposing storage network configurations, device credentials, and other sensitive management data.

The vulnerability specifically occurs in the disaster recovery failover context, meaning the timing window for exploitation is tied to when such events occur in the environment.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-12680

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected access to SANnav log files by privileged accounts
• Unusual download or access patterns for supportsave diagnostic bundles
• Database authentication attempts using credentials that should not be directly accessible
• Administrative user activity on standby SANnav servers outside of maintenance windows

Detection Strategies

• Monitor file access events on SANnav log directories for anomalous read operations
• Implement audit logging for supportsave bundle generation and access
• Configure alerts for database connection attempts that don't originate from expected SANnav application processes
• Review administrative user session activity for suspicious log file browsing behavior

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable comprehensive audit logging on SANnav servers, particularly standby nodes
• Implement file integrity monitoring on log directories to detect unauthorized access
• Configure SIEM rules to correlate administrative access with subsequent database activity
• Regularly review supportsave bundle generation logs and access patterns

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-12680

Immediate Actions Required

• Upgrade Brocade SANnav to version 2.4.0b or later immediately
• Restrict access to SANnav log files and supportsave bundles to only essential personnel
• Rotate database passwords if a disaster recovery failover has occurred on vulnerable versions
• Audit access logs for any indication that log files or supportsave bundles have been accessed by unauthorized parties

Patch Information

Broadcom has addressed this vulnerability in Brocade SANnav version 2.4.0b. Organizations should upgrade to this version or later to remediate the cleartext password logging issue. For complete details, refer to the Broadcom Security Advisory.

Workarounds

• Implement strict access controls on SANnav log directories and supportsave storage locations
• Ensure only essential administrators have access to standby SANnav servers
• Remove or securely archive supportsave bundles generated from vulnerable versions after disaster recovery events
• Consider network segmentation to limit access to SANnav management infrastructure
• Implement additional authentication layers for database access independent of SANnav credentials

# Example: Restrict access to SANnav logs directory
chmod 700 /var/log/sannav
chown root:sannav-admins /var/log/sannav
# Rotate database credentials after patching
# Consult Broadcom documentation for proper credential rotation procedures