CVE-2018-1388
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 · uneditedGSKit V7 may disclose side channel information via discrepancies between valid and invalid PKCS#1 padding. IBM X-Force ID: 138212.
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 · moderate confidenceGSKit V7 contains a timing side-channel vulnerability where discrepancies between valid and invalid PKCS#1 padding validation could allow an attacker to infer information about plaintext or private keys through repeated cryptographic operations, potentially enabling padding oracle attacks.
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= 7.0.1.0= 7.0.1.1= 7.0.1.2= 7.0.1.3= 7.0.1.4= 7.0.1.5= 7.0.1.6= 7.0.1.7= 7.0.1.8= 7.0.1.9= 7.0.1.10= 7.0.1.11CVSS 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
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/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 IBM WebSphere MQ installationRun 'dspmqver' command or check the installation directory for version informationAffected if The installed version matches 7.0.1.0 through 7.0.1.11 (any of the listed versions)
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Locate GSKit version in useCheck the GSKit library files bundled with WebSphere MQ (typically in the 'mq/InstallationManager' or 'mq/java/lib' directory) or run 'gsk7capicmd_64 -version' if availableAffected if GSKit V7 is present and in use by the WebSphere MQ installation
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Verify SSL/TLS listener configurationExamine WebSphere MQ queue manager SSL configuration using runmqsc 'DISPLAY LISTENER' and 'DISPLAY CHANNEL' commands, checking for STACKNAME or SSLKEY settingsAffected if Queue managers have SSL/TLS listeners or channels configured using GSKit as the cryptographic provider
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Check for active cryptographic operationsReview MQ configuration for channels using TLS/SSL (AMQSCHAN, SYSTEM.DEF.SVRCONN, etc.) and verify they are actively accepting connectionsAffected if TLS/SSL channels are enabled and actively processing encrypted traffic through affected MQ queue managers
A system is affected if IBM WebSphere MQ version 7.0.1.0-7.0.1.11 is installed with GSKit V7 and has SSL/TLS channels or listeners configured that rely on GSKit for cryptographic operations.
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 dataApply IBM's GSKit V7 security update to fix the padding validation timing discrepancy, and audit cryptographic code paths that use GSKit to ensure no timing leakage remains.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,872.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-1388 — 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-2018-1388 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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