Critical Permission Misconfiguration in ibaPDA by iba Systems Exposes Industrial Systems

Critical Permission Flaw Discovered in ibaPDA Industrial Software

The Spanish National Cybersecurity Institute's Computer Emergency Response Team (INCIBE-CERT) has issued a security advisory regarding a critical permission misconfiguration in ibaPDA, a widely used industrial data acquisition software developed by iba Systems. The vulnerability, which remains unassigned a CVE identifier at the time of reporting, was disclosed on January 29, 2026.

Technical Details

The flaw stems from improper permission assignment within the ibaPDA software, potentially allowing unauthorized users to access sensitive industrial process data. While specific technical details remain limited in the public advisory, the misconfiguration likely involves:

• Inadequate access control lists (ACLs) for critical system files or directories
• Default or overly permissive user roles that grant excessive privileges
• Lack of least-privilege enforcement in the software’s permission model

INCIBE-CERT has classified this as a high-severity issue due to its potential impact on industrial control systems (ICS) and operational technology (OT) environments.

Impact Analysis

If exploited, this vulnerability could enable attackers to:

• Gain unauthorized access to real-time and historical industrial process data
• Manipulate or exfiltrate sensitive operational information, including production metrics, sensor readings, and system configurations
• Escalate privileges within the industrial network, potentially leading to further compromise of connected OT systems
• Disrupt industrial operations by tampering with data acquisition processes

The flaw poses a significant risk to organizations in manufacturing, energy, and critical infrastructure sectors where ibaPDA is deployed for process monitoring and data analysis.

Recommendations

INCIBE-CERT urges affected organizations to:

1. Apply patches or mitigations as soon as they become available from iba Systems
2. Review and restrict user permissions within ibaPDA to enforce the principle of least privilege
3. Monitor for suspicious activity in industrial networks, particularly unauthorized access attempts to ibaPDA systems
4. Segment OT networks to limit lateral movement in the event of a compromise
5. Contact iba Systems support for guidance on interim security measures until an official patch is released

Security teams are advised to stay updated via INCIBE-CERT’s official advisory for further technical details and remediation steps.