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CVE-2025-54808 Oxford Nanopore Technologies CVE debrief

CVE-2025-54808 affects Oxford Nanopore Technologies MinKNOW version 24.11 and earlier. The advisory says MinKNOW stores authentication tokens in a file under the system temporary directory (/tmp), which is typically world-readable on the host. That can let another local user or application read the token. If the token is exposed and Remote Connect is enabled, an attacker can use it to establish unauthorized remote connections to the sequencer. The advisory also notes that this access can be chained to create developer tokens with arbitrary expiration dates, which can support persistent access. This is a local-to-remote risk: the initial exposure depends on local access or local malware, and remote abuse depends on Remote Connect being enabled. CISA published the issue as ICSMA-25-294-01 on 2025-10-21 with a CVSS 3.1 score of 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Vendor
Oxford Nanopore Technologies
Product
MinKNOW
CVSS
HIGH 7.8
CISA KEV
Not listed in stored evidence
Original CVE published
2025-10-21
Original CVE updated
2025-10-21
Advisory published
2025-10-21
Advisory updated
2025-10-21

Who should care

Operators of MinKNOW-based sequencing systems, lab IT administrators, OT/ICS security teams, and endpoint defenders responsible for hosts running MinKNOW 24.11 or earlier—especially where multiple local users exist or Remote Connect is enabled.

Technical summary

CISA’s CSAF advisory states that MinKNOW at or prior to version 24.11 stores authentication tokens in /tmp on the host machine. Because /tmp is typically world-readable, local users or applications may be able to access the token. Successful remote misuse requires Remote Connect to be enabled; the advisory notes this may be enabled intentionally for operations or by malware with elevated privileges. The source rates the issue CVSS 3.1 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Defensive priority

High. Upgrade affected systems as soon as possible, and treat any MinKNOW 24.11-or-earlier host with Remote Connect enabled as urgent to review.

Recommended defensive actions

  • Upgrade to MinKNOW versions later than 24.11.
  • Keep Remote Connect disabled unless it is strictly required, and enable it only within trusted network environments.
  • Install and maintain antivirus and malware-scanning tools on affected hosts.
  • If you cannot upgrade immediately, contact Oxford Nanopore Support for configuration guidance.
  • Review MinKNOW hosts for unnecessary local access exposure and investigate any unexpected Remote Connect use or token handling issues.

Evidence notes

The supplied CISA CSAF advisory (ICSMA-25-294-01) and source record were initially published on 2025-10-21, with the same modified date in the provided timeline. The advisory says MinKNOW at or prior to 24.11 stores authentication tokens in /tmp, that /tmp is typically world-readable, that remote misuse requires Remote Connect to be enabled, and that developer tokens can be created with arbitrary expiration dates. The provided CVSS vector is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

Sources and references

Verified primary and authoritative sources

  • CVE-2025-54808 CVE Program record

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-54808

    CVE Program - Official CVE Program record with source-provided CVE metadata.

  • CVE-2025-54808 NVD vulnerability detail

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-54808

    NIST National Vulnerability Database - Official NIST NVD detail page and source-specific vulnerability assessment.

Supplemental references

  • Source item URL

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cisagov/CSAF/develop/csaf_files/OT/white/2025/icsma-25-294-01.json

    cisa_csaf

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/ics-medical-advisories/icsma-25-294-01

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/ics/alerts/ICS-ALERT-10-301-01

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources/ics-recommended-practices

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Cybersecurity_Best_Practices_for_Industrial_Control_Systems.pdf

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/topics/industrial-control-systems

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/sites/default/files/publications/emailscams0905.pdf

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/ncas/tips/ST04-014

    Reference

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.