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Infosphere Import Export ManagerApplication · Ibm

CVE-2012-0204

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2013-01-31
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Untrusted search path vulnerability in InfoSphere Import Export Manager 8.1 through 9.1 in InfoSphere Information Server MetaBrokers & Bridges (MBB) in IBM InfoSphere Information Server 8.1, 8.5 before FP3, 8.7, and 9.1 allows local users to gain privileges via a Trojan horse DLL in the current working directory.

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 · high confidence

Untrusted search path vulnerability in IBM InfoSphere Import Export Manager allows local privilege escalation via DLL hijacking. The application loads DLLs from the current working directory before checking system paths, enabling attackers to place a malicious DLL that gets executed with elevated privileges.

MitigationApply IBM fix packs (8.5 FP3 or later) or ensure the application runs from a secure directory with no user-writable locations in the DLL search path. Implement safe DLL loading using SetDllDirectory or LOAD_LIBRARY_SEARCH flags.

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

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Infosphere Import Export ManagerApplication
Affected:= 8.1= 8.1.1= 8.1.2= 8.5= 8.7= 9.1
Infosphere Information ServerApplication
Affected:= 8.1= 8.5= 8.5.0.1= 8.5.0.2= 8.7= 9.1
Infosphere Information Server Metabrokers \& BridgesApplication
Affected:all versions

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
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

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 installed IBM InfoSphere Import Export Manager version
    Check the installed version via Windows Registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\IBM\InfoSphere\ImportExportManager or locate the executable (typically in C:\Program Files\IBM\InformationServer\) and view its properties. On Unix/Linux, check /opt/IBM/InformationServer/ or use the version command if available.
    Affected if The installed version matches 8.1, 8.1.1, 8.1.2, 8.5, 8.7, or 9.1, or if IBM InfoSphere Information Server versions 8.1, 8.5, 8.5.0.1, 8.5.0.2, 8.7, or 9.1 are present with Import Export Manager component.
  2. Confirm IBM InfoSphere Information Server and Metabrokers/Bridges presence
    Check for installation of IBM InfoSphere Information Server or Metabrokers & Bridges components in the same environment via Windows Add/Remove Programs or registry keys under HKLM\SOFTWARE\IBM\InfoSphere.
    Affected if Any version of IBM InfoSphere Information Server Metabrokers & Bridges is installed (all versions affected), or the core Information Server product is present with affected versions.
  3. Verify directory permissions on application executable folder
    Review the permissions on the directory containing the Import Export Manager executable (commonly C:\Program Files\IBM\InformationServer\). Ensure standard users cannot write files to this location.
    Affected if The directory containing the application executable is writable by non-privileged users, enabling them to place a malicious DLL.
  4. Inspect current working directory usage
    Observe where users typically launch the Import Export Manager application from. Document if users run the application from user-writable directories (like desktop, downloads, or shared network drives).
    Affected if Users launch the application from directories where they have write access, or the application's working directory is user-controllable.

A user is affected if IBM InfoSphere Import Export Manager version 8.1 through 9.1 (or IBM InfoSphere Information Server/Metabrokers/Bridges of any affected version) is installed AND the application executable directory or the typical working directory is writable by unprivileged users, allowing DLL hijacking.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply IBM fix packs (8.5 FP3 or later) or ensure the application runs from a secure directory with no user-writable locations in the DLL search path. Implement safe DLL loading using SetDllDirectory or LOAD_LIBRARY_SEARCH flags.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

IBM InfoSphere Information Server 8.5 Fix Pack 3 or later (8.7, 9.1)

  1. Identify the currently installed version of IBM InfoSphere Information Server using IBM InfoSphere Information Server installation manager or version detection tools
  2. Download IBM InfoSphere Information Server Fix Pack 3 (or later) from IBM Fix Central (fixcentral.ibm.com)
  3. Apply Fix Pack 3 to InfoSphere Information Server 8.5 installations using IBM Installation Manager
  4. For InfoSphere Import Export Manager 8.1.x and 8.5, apply the corresponding fix pack or upgrade to a fixed version
  5. For InfoSphere Information Server MetaBrokers & Bridges, apply all available security updates
  6. Restart affected services after applying the fix
  7. Verify the fix was applied successfully by checking the version and confirming DLL loading behavior
Caveat Review IBM fix pack release notes for any migration considerations; test in non-production environment before applying to production systems

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Infosphere Import Export Manager Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2012-0204 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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