CVE-2025-62645: RBI Assistant Auth Bypass Vulnerability

CVE-2025-62645 Overview

CVE-2025-62645 is a critical privilege escalation vulnerability in the Restaurant Brands International (RBI) assistant platform. The vulnerability allows a remote authenticated attacker to obtain a token with administrative privileges for the entire platform via the createToken GraphQL mutation. This broken access control flaw (CWE-266: Incorrect Privilege Assignment) enables low-privileged users to escalate to full administrative access, potentially compromising the entire RBI platform infrastructure that supports major fast-food chains.

Critical Impact

Authenticated attackers can escalate privileges to full administrative access across the entire RBI platform, potentially affecting operations for Burger King, Tim Hortons, Popeyes, and other Restaurant Brands International subsidiaries.

Affected Products

• RBI Restaurant Brands International Assistant (all versions through 2025-09-06)
• Drive-thru and ordering platform systems utilizing the RBI assistant infrastructure
• GraphQL API endpoints exposed to authenticated users

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-10-17 - CVE-2025-62645 published to NVD
• 2025-11-04 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-62645

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability represents a severe broken access control issue within the RBI assistant platform's GraphQL API. The flaw stems from inadequate authorization checks in the createToken GraphQL mutation, which fails to verify whether the requesting user has sufficient privileges to generate administrative tokens. When exploited, any authenticated user—regardless of their actual role or permission level—can invoke this mutation to obtain a token granting full administrative control over the platform.

The scope of this vulnerability extends beyond the vulnerable component itself, as the obtained administrative token provides access to the broader RBI platform infrastructure. This cross-scope impact significantly amplifies the potential damage, as attackers could potentially access sensitive data, modify system configurations, or disrupt operations across multiple restaurant chains under the RBI umbrella.

Root Cause

The root cause is incorrect privilege assignment (CWE-266) in the GraphQL API layer. The createToken mutation lacks proper authorization middleware to validate that the authenticated user has the necessary permissions to create administrative tokens. This represents a fundamental design flaw where the API assumes that authentication alone is sufficient for authorization, failing to implement role-based access control (RBAC) checks before processing sensitive token creation requests.

Attack Vector

The attack can be executed remotely over the network by any authenticated user of the RBI platform. The exploitation path involves:

1. An attacker first authenticates to the RBI assistant platform with any valid user credentials (even low-privileged accounts)
2. The attacker then crafts a GraphQL mutation request targeting the createToken endpoint
3. Without proper authorization validation, the server processes the request and returns an administrative token
4. The attacker uses this token to gain full administrative access to the platform

The vulnerability does not require any user interaction to exploit. Once an attacker obtains valid credentials through any means (phishing, credential stuffing, insider access, etc.), they can immediately escalate to administrative privileges.

The exploitation leverages the GraphQL createToken mutation which accepts parameters for token generation without validating the requester's authorization level. Technical details and demonstration of the vulnerability have been documented in security research publications and covered by Malwarebytes.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-62645

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected administrative token creation events in GraphQL API logs
• Multiple createToken mutation requests from accounts with low-privilege roles
• Administrative actions performed by accounts that should not have elevated permissions
• Unusual API activity patterns showing privilege escalation attempts

Detection Strategies

• Monitor GraphQL mutation logs for createToken calls from non-administrative user sessions
• Implement anomaly detection for token creation patterns that deviate from baseline behavior
• Deploy API security monitoring tools to track authorization bypass attempts
• Review authentication and authorization logs for discrepancies between user roles and performed actions

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed logging for all GraphQL mutations, particularly authentication-related operations
• Configure alerts for administrative token creation events that correlate with non-admin user sessions
• Implement real-time monitoring of privilege escalation indicators across the platform
• Conduct regular audits of user permissions versus actual system access patterns

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-62645

Immediate Actions Required

• Audit all existing administrative tokens and revoke any that were created under suspicious circumstances
• Review authentication logs to identify potential exploitation attempts since deployment
• Implement emergency access controls to restrict createToken mutation access to verified administrators only
• Consider temporary rate limiting on GraphQL endpoints while permanent fixes are deployed

Patch Information

Organizations using the RBI assistant platform should contact Restaurant Brands International directly for patch information and remediation guidance. The vulnerability affects versions through 2025-09-06, indicating that fixes may be available in subsequent releases. Review the archived security disclosure and news coverage for additional context on vendor response.

Workarounds

• Implement additional authorization middleware at the API gateway level to validate admin privileges before processing createToken requests
• Deploy Web Application Firewall (WAF) rules to filter GraphQL mutations targeting sensitive endpoints
• Enable strict role-based access control (RBAC) validation at the application layer
• Consider network segmentation to limit exposure of administrative API endpoints

# GraphQL query logging configuration example
# Enable verbose logging for createToken mutations
export GRAPHQL_LOG_LEVEL=DEBUG
export GRAPHQL_MUTATION_AUDIT=true
export GRAPHQL_SENSITIVE_MUTATIONS="createToken,updatePermissions,deleteUser"