CVE-2018-1427
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 · uneditedIBM GSKit (IBM DB2 for Linux, UNIX and Windows 9.7, 10.1, 10.5, and 11.1) contains several environment variables that a local attacker could overflow and cause a denial of service. IBM X-Force ID: 139072.
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 GSKit, used by IBM DB2 for Linux, UNIX and Windows (versions 9.7, 10.1, 10.5, and 11.1), contains a buffer overflow vulnerability in several environment variables. A local attacker can exploit this by overflowing these environment variables to cause a denial of service.
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= 9.7= 10.1= 10.5= 11.1CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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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Check installed DB2 versionRun 'db2level' command or check Windows registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\IBM\DB2\<installed_instance> for the version stringAffected if Version is 9.7, 10.1, 10.5, or 11.1 (any fix pack within these releases)
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Locate GSKit installation directoryFor DB2 installations, GSKit is typically bundled under the DB2 installation directory; check for gsk*.dll (Windows) or libgsk*.so (Linux/Unix) in the DB2 installation pathAffected if GSKit files are present in the DB2 installation directory
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Verify DB2 uses GSKit for SSL/TLSCheck DB2 configuration by running 'db2 get dbm cfg' and look for GSKit-related parameters such as SSL settings, SSL_CLNT_KEYDB, SSL_SVR_KEYDB, or SSL_SVR_STASHAffected if DB2 is configured to use GSKit for SSL/TLS connections (any of these SSL_* configuration parameters are set)
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Check for vulnerable environment variable handlingThis is a buffer overflow in environment variables processed by GSKit; the vulnerability exists if DB2 with the affected versions is running and handling SSL-related operationsAffected if DB2 version is affected AND GSKit is being used for SSL/TLS functionality
You are affected if DB2 versions 9.7, 10.1, 10.5, or 11.1 are installed with GSKit enabled for SSL/TLS operations, as the buffer overflow exists in GSKit's environment variable processing.
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 the IBM patch for GSKit/DB2 corresponding to CVE-2018-1427. As this is a local attack vector, also restrict local access to trusted users and monitor for suspicious process execution.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-1427 — 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-2018-1427 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
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