CVE-2016-2933
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 · uneditedDirectory traversal vulnerability in IBM BigFix Remote Control before 9.1.3 allows remote authenticated administrators to read arbitrary files via a crafted request.
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 confidenceIBM BigFix Remote Control versions prior to 9.1.3 contain a directory traversal vulnerability that allows authenticated administrator users to access files outside the intended web root directory through specially crafted HTTP requests containing path traversal sequences (such as ../). This enables unauthorized read access to sensitive files on the host system.
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<= 9.1.2CVSS 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
- Low
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed IBM BigFix Remote Control versionLocate and verify the installed version of IBM BigFix Remote Control on the system. This can typically be found in the product's About section, installation directory files, or system inventory. Compare the version number against the affected range.Affected if The installed version is 9.1.2 or earlier (versions prior to 9.1.3)
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Confirm web interface is enabledDetermine whether the IBM BigFix Remote Control web interface is running and accessible. Check if the HTTP/HTTPS service is active and listening on configured ports.Affected if The web interface is exposed and operational
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Verify administrative access existsIdentify whether administrator accounts are configured for IBM BigFix Remote Control. The vulnerability requires an authenticated administrator user to exploit the path traversal flaw.Affected if Administrative users exist with access to the web interface
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Inspect HTTP logs for path traversal patternsReview web server access logs for IBM BigFix Remote Control for requests containing path traversal sequences such as '../' or similar patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts.Affected if Suspicious requests containing '../' sequences are present in the logs
The environment is affected if IBM BigFix Remote Control version 9.1.2 or earlier is installed with the web interface accessible to authenticated administrators.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataUpgrade IBM BigFix Remote Control to version 9.1.3 or later to obtain the patched code. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict administrative access to trusted IP addresses and monitor for suspicious request patterns containing path traversal characters.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-2933 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-2933 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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