CVE-2025-21102: Dell VxRail Password Disclosure Flaw

CVE-2025-21102 Overview

CVE-2025-21102 is a Plaintext Storage of a Password vulnerability affecting Dell VxRail hyperconverged infrastructure appliances running firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532. This security flaw allows a high-privileged attacker with local access to the system to potentially retrieve sensitive credential information stored in plaintext, leading to information exposure that could be leveraged for further attacks within the environment.

Critical Impact

High-privileged local attackers can extract plaintext passwords from Dell VxRail systems, potentially compromising service accounts, administrative credentials, and enabling lateral movement within virtualized infrastructure environments.

Affected Products

• Dell VxRail D-Series (D560, D560F) firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532
• Dell VxRail E-Series (E460, E560, E560F, E560N, E660, E660F, E660N, E665, E665F, E665N and VCF variants) firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532
• Dell VxRail G-Series (G560, G560F and VCF variants) firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532
• Dell VxRail P-Series (P470, P570, P570F, P580N, P670F, P670N, P675F, P675N and VCF variants) firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532
• Dell VxRail S-Series (S470, S570, S670 and VCF variants) firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532
• Dell VxRail V-Series (V470, V570, V670F and VCF variants) firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532
• Dell VxRail VD-Series (VD-4000R, VD-4000W, VD-4000Z, VD-4510C, VD-4520C) firmware versions 7.0.000 through 7.0.532

Discovery Timeline

• January 8, 2025 - CVE-2025-21102 published to NVD
• January 24, 2025 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-21102

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability stems from improper credential storage practices within the Dell VxRail firmware. The system stores passwords in plaintext rather than using secure cryptographic hashing or encryption mechanisms. When credentials are stored without proper protection, any user or process with sufficient privileges to read the relevant configuration files or storage locations can directly retrieve the actual password values.

The vulnerability is classified under CWE-256 (Unprotected Storage of Credentials) and CWE-522 (Insufficiently Protected Credentials), both of which relate to inadequate protection of authentication secrets. The attack requires local access to the affected VxRail appliance and high privileges, limiting the immediate attack surface. However, in enterprise environments where VxRail appliances manage critical virtualized workloads, credential exposure can have significant downstream consequences.

Root Cause

The root cause of CVE-2025-21102 is the implementation of plaintext password storage within the Dell VxRail firmware. Rather than implementing industry-standard practices such as one-way cryptographic hashing with salts or encryption for stored credentials, the affected firmware versions store password data in a directly readable format. This design flaw violates fundamental security principles for credential management and creates unnecessary risk when privileged users or compromised processes access the system.

Attack Vector

The attack vector for this vulnerability requires an attacker to first obtain high-privileged local access to a vulnerable Dell VxRail appliance. This could be achieved through various means including:

1. Compromised administrator credentials through phishing or credential stuffing
2. Exploitation of another vulnerability that provides initial foothold
3. Malicious insider with legitimate administrative access
4. Physical access to the system console

Once local privileged access is obtained, the attacker can read configuration files, system logs, or other storage locations where passwords are stored in plaintext. The retrieved credentials could then be used to access other systems, services, or escalate privileges within the broader VMware vSphere or VCF environment that VxRail typically manages.

Since no verified proof-of-concept code is available for this vulnerability, the exploitation details remain generalized. The vulnerability manifests through improper storage mechanisms where credential data can be extracted by reading accessible configuration or data stores on the appliance.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-21102

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual read access patterns to configuration files or credential storage locations on VxRail appliances
• Unexpected local login activity from high-privileged accounts, especially during off-hours
• Evidence of credential dumping tools or scripts executed on VxRail systems
• Lateral movement attempts using credentials that should only exist on VxRail appliances

Detection Strategies

• Monitor file access logs for reads to sensitive configuration directories on VxRail appliances
• Implement file integrity monitoring (FIM) on critical credential storage paths
• Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions on management interfaces to detect credential harvesting activities
• Review authentication logs for anomalous use of service accounts associated with VxRail infrastructure

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable comprehensive audit logging on all VxRail appliances and forward logs to a centralized SIEM
• Configure alerts for local privileged account usage patterns that deviate from baseline behavior
• Monitor for lateral movement attempts using VxRail service credentials across the vSphere environment
• Implement behavioral analytics to detect credential theft and misuse patterns

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-21102

Immediate Actions Required

• Upgrade affected Dell VxRail appliances to firmware version 7.0.533 or later as specified in the Dell security advisory
• Audit current privileged access to VxRail systems and remove unnecessary administrative permissions
• Rotate all credentials that may have been stored in plaintext on affected systems
• Review access logs for any suspicious activity that may indicate prior exploitation

Patch Information

Dell has released a security update addressing this vulnerability. Refer to Dell Security Update DSA-2025-027 for detailed patch information and upgrade instructions. The update addresses multiple vulnerabilities including CVE-2025-21102 and should be applied following Dell's recommended upgrade procedures for VxRail appliances.

Workarounds

• Restrict local access to VxRail appliances to only essential personnel with documented business needs
• Implement additional access controls and multi-factor authentication for administrative access to VxRail systems
• Segment VxRail management networks from general user networks to limit potential attack paths
• Deploy privileged access management (PAM) solutions to monitor and control administrative sessions

# Example: Verify current VxRail firmware version
# Access the VxRail Manager UI or use the CLI to check version
# Ensure version is 7.0.533 or later after patching

# Review local user accounts on VxRail appliances
esxcli system account list

# Check recent authentication events
cat /var/log/auth.log | grep -i "accepted\|failed"