dbcve.org
Cleartext TransmissionWeakness · CWE-319

CVE-2025-0136

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v4.0 Published 2025-05-14
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Using the AES-128-CCM algorithm for IPSec on certain Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS® firewalls (PA-7500, PA-5400, PA-5400f, PA-3400, PA-1600, PA-1400, and PA-400 Series) leads to unencrypted data transfer to devices that are connected to the PAN-OS firewall through IPSec. This issue does not affect Cloud NGFWs, Prisma® Access instances, or PAN-OS VM-Series firewalls. NOTE: The AES-128-CCM encryption algorithm is not recommended for use.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

Using the AES-128-CCM encryption algorithm for IPSec tunnels on affected Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS hardware firewalls (PA-7500, PA-5400, PA-5400f, PA-3400, PA-1600, PA-1400, and PA-400 Series) results in traffic being transmitted unencrypted despite IPSec tunnel establishment, creating a confidentiality breach.

MitigationDisable AES-128-CCM for all IPSec tunnels on affected firewalls and migrate to recommended encryption algorithms (such as AES-256-GCM or AES-256-CBC) per Palo Alto Networks guidance.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
Authentication
None
User interaction
None
Scope
X

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:L/VI:L/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:N/R:U/V:C/RE:M/U:Amber

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify the firewall hardware model
    Access the firewall's web interface (Device > Setup > Operations > Device Information) or CLI (show system info) to determine the model number. Confirm it is one of: PA-7500, PA-5400, PA-5400f, PA-3400, PA-1600, PA-1400, or PA-400 Series.
    Affected if The firewall model is NOT one of the listed affected series - if it is listed, proceed to next check.
  2. Verify IPSec tunnel configuration exists
    Navigate to Network > IPSec Tunnels in the web interface or use the CLI command 'show vpn ipsec' to list all configured IPSec tunnels.
    Affected if No IPSec tunnels are configured - the vulnerability does not apply. If tunnels exist, proceed to next check.
  3. Examine encryption algorithm for each IPSec tunnel
    For each IPSec tunnel, view the tunnel configuration (Network > IPSec Tunnels > select tunnel > General tab) and identify the Encryption setting. In CLI, use 'show vpn ipsec tunnel <name>' to view tunnel details.
    Affected if At least one IPSec tunnel is configured with AES-128-CCM as the Encryption algorithm - this indicates the environment is affected by the vulnerability.

The environment is affected if the firewall is one of the PA-7500, PA-5400, PA-5400f, PA-3400, PA-1600, PA-1400, or PA-400 Series models AND has one or more IPSec tunnels configured using AES-128-CCM encryption algorithm.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Disable AES-128-CCM for all IPSec tunnels on affected firewalls and migrate to recommended encryption algorithms (such as AES-256-GCM or AES-256-CBC) per Palo Alto Networks guidance.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-0136 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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