CVE-2025-2765: Carlinkit Autokit Auth Bypass Vulnerability

CVE-2025-2765 Overview

CVE-2025-2765 is an authentication bypass vulnerability in the CarlinKit CPC200-CCPA wireless CarPlay adapter. The flaw resides in the configuration of the device's wireless hotspot, which uses hard-coded credentials [CWE-798]. A network-adjacent attacker can associate with the hotspot and bypass authentication without user interaction. The Zero Day Initiative tracked this issue as ZDI-CAN-24349 and published advisory ZDI-25-177.

Critical Impact
An attacker within wireless range can join the device's hotspot using embedded credentials, gaining unauthenticated access that exposes confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected system.

Affected Products

CarlinKit CPC200-CCPA hardware device
CarlinKit Autokit software version 2024.01.19.1541
Wireless hotspot configuration component

Discovery Timeline

2025-04-23 - CVE-2025-2765 published to the National Vulnerability Database
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-2765

Vulnerability Analysis

The CarlinKit CPC200-CCPA is a wireless adapter that bridges wired Apple CarPlay head units to smartphones over Wi-Fi. To provide this bridge, the device exposes an on-board wireless hotspot that pairing clients join before handshaking with the vehicle's infotainment system.

The vulnerability stems from static credentials embedded in the hotspot configuration shipped with the Autokit firmware. Because these credentials are identical across devices, they function as a universal key. Any attacker within Wi-Fi range can associate with the hotspot without prior enrollment or user approval.

Once associated, the attacker occupies a trusted position on the device's local network. From that position, an attacker can reach management interfaces, injection points, and pairing routines that assume the connected client has been authorized by the vehicle owner. This categorizes the issue as a Hardcoded Credentials weakness leading to Authentication Bypass.

Root Cause

The root cause is the use of hard-coded credentials [CWE-798] in the wireless hotspot configuration. The firmware ships with static Wi-Fi authentication material that cannot be rotated per device or per session, violating the principle of unique per-device secrets.

Attack Vector

Exploitation requires adjacent-network access, meaning the attacker must be within Wi-Fi range of the target CPC200-CCPA. No user interaction and no prior authentication are required. After joining the hotspot with the embedded credentials, the attacker gains unauthenticated network access to the device.

Refer to the Zero Day Initiative Advisory ZDI-25-177 for the vendor-coordinated technical details. No public proof-of-concept exploit code has been published.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-2765

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected client associations to the CPC200-CCPA hotspot SSID from unknown MAC addresses
Wireless probe requests or association events observed outside expected pairing windows
Traffic to the adapter's internal management services from devices that are not the paired driver's phone

Detection Strategies

Monitor wireless client counts on the adapter's hotspot and alert on more than one associated station
Inspect vehicle telematics or fleet management logs for repeated CPC200-CCPA pairings in areas where the vehicle is parked in public
Correlate Wi-Fi association events with vehicle ignition state to flag connections while the vehicle is unattended

Monitoring Recommendations

Deploy Wi-Fi intrusion detection in fleet parking areas to capture unauthorized associations to CarlinKit SSIDs
Log MAC address history on the head unit and review for unknown clients
Track firmware versions across a fleet to identify units running vulnerable Autokit builds such as 2024.01.19.1541

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-2765

Immediate Actions Required

Power off or disconnect CPC200-CCPA adapters in high-risk parking environments until a vendor patch is installed
Inventory all CarlinKit adapters and record firmware versions to identify exposed devices
Restrict use of the adapter to trusted locations where wireless proximity attacks are unlikely

Patch Information

At the time of publication, no vendor advisory or fixed firmware release has been referenced in the NVD entry for CVE-2025-2765. Monitor the Zero Day Initiative Advisory ZDI-25-177 and CarlinKit's support channels for updated firmware that removes the hard-coded hotspot credentials.

Workarounds

Physically disconnect the adapter when not actively in use to eliminate the wireless attack surface
Where the adapter permits, change the default hotspot SSID and password to reduce trivial discovery, though this does not fully remediate the embedded credential issue
Avoid pairing the adapter in public locations where an attacker could observe or intercept the wireless traffic

bash

# Configuration example
# Verify installed Autokit firmware version on the CPC200-CCPA management interface
# and disable the hotspot when the vehicle is parked in untrusted locations.
# Refer to ZDI-25-177 for vendor-specific remediation guidance.