Summary
Snowflake JDBC allows an untrusted search path on Windows
Issue
Snowflake discovered and remediated a vulnerability in the Snowflake JDBC Driver. When the EXTERNALBROWSER authentication method is used on Windows, an attacker with write access to a directory in the %PATH% can escalate their privileges to the user that runs the vulnerable JDBC Driver version.
This vulnerability affects versions 3.2.3 through 3.21.0 on Windows. Snowflake fixed the issue in version 3.22.0.
Vulnerability Details
When the EXTERNALBROWSER authentication method is selected, the Snowflake JDBC Driver on non-macOS operating systems tries to open the SSO URL using xdg-open. Because xdg-open is a Linux program that doesn’t exist in a default Windows installation, a sufficiently privileged attacker could place a malicious executable in one of the directories on the %PATH% and achieve local privilege escalation to the user running the JDBC Driver.
Additional Information
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Impact
CVE-2025-24789 has a CVSS score of 7.8 (High). The vector is requires local access, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (3.22.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
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Snowflake released version 3.22.0 of the Snowflake JDBC Driver, which fixes this issue. We recommend users upgrade to version 3.22.0.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2025-24789? CVE-2025-24789 is a high-severity security vulnerability in net.snowflake:snowflake-jdbc (maven), affecting versions >= 3.2.3, <= 3.21.0. It is fixed in 3.22.0.
- How severe is CVE-2025-24789? CVE-2025-24789 has a CVSS score of 7.8 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Which versions of net.snowflake:snowflake-jdbc are affected by CVE-2025-24789? net.snowflake:snowflake-jdbc (maven) versions >= 3.2.3, <= 3.21.0 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2025-24789? Yes. CVE-2025-24789 is fixed in 3.22.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2025-24789 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-24789 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2025-24789 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix CVE-2025-24789? Upgrade
net.snowflake:snowflake-jdbcto 3.22.0 or later.