Past incidents like the August 2022 LastPass breach highlight how compromised Plex servers can serve as entry points for larger security breaches, emphasizing the importance of timely updates.

Despite the widespread exposure, only a fraction of servers have applied the security patch, leaving over 314,000 vulnerable instances still exposed on the internet.

While no public proof-of-concept exploit is currently available, the risk remains high as attackers could develop one, especially considering the large number of vulnerable servers.

Users are strongly advised to update their Plex servers immediately and secure access, as the vulnerability allows remote access, corruption, or disabling of servers without user interaction.

Despite an urgent security update issued by Plex earlier this month, over 314,000 servers remain vulnerable to a critical flaw (CVE-2025-34158), which affects versions 1.41.7.x to 1.42.0.x.

This high-severity vulnerability, rated with a CVSS score of 10.0, allows remote attackers to exploit the flaw without authentication, potentially leading to complete system compromise, including data deletion and server disablement.

The flaw's technical details were initially withheld but have since been acknowledged, raising concerns about potential exploitation given the severity and widespread exposure.

The vulnerability, fixed in version 1.42.1, affects the input validation process and has severe impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Plex issued a security update and contacted users via email to upgrade to version 1.42.1.10060 or later, but many have yet to apply the fix.

A scan by Censys identified over 428,000 accessible Plex Media Server instances globally, primarily in the US and Europe, with only about 100,000 having updated to the patched version.

The vulnerability enables remote attackers to access, corrupt, or disable servers without user interaction, posing significant security risks.