CVE-2019-8990
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 · uneditedThe HTTP Connector component of TIBCO Software Inc.'s TIBCO ActiveMatrix BusinessWorks contains a vulnerability that theoretically allows unauthenticated HTTP requests to be processed by the BusinessWorks engine even when authentication is required. This possibility is restricted to circumstances where HTTP "Basic Authentication" policy is used in conjunction with an XML Authentication resource. The BusinessWorks engine might instead use credentials from a prior HTTP request for authorization purposes. Affected releases are TIBCO Software Inc. TIBCO ActiveMatrix BusinessWorks: versions up to and including 6.4.2.
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 confidenceIn TIBCO ActiveMatrix BusinessWorks, when HTTP Basic Authentication policy is used together with an XML Authentication resource, the BusinessWorks engine may incorrectly reuse credentials from a prior HTTP request for authorization. This allows unauthenticated attackers to bypass authentication and have their requests processed by the engine.
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<= 6.4.2CVSS 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
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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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Identify BusinessWorks installation versionLocate the TIBCO ActiveMatrix BusinessWorks installation and check the version file or manifest. Typical locations include the installation directory's version info or check via TIBCO Enterprise Administrator. Compare the version number to the affected range <= 6.4.2.Affected if The installed version is 6.4.2 or any version lower than 6.4.2
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Locate HTTP Basic Authentication policy configurationSearch the BusinessWorks project or application configuration files for HTTP Basic Authentication policy settings. Look in XML configuration files, deployment descriptors, or the TIBCO Admin domain configuration where HTTP security policies are defined.Affected if HTTP Basic Authentication policy is configured and enabled for any HTTP endpoint or service
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Locate XML Authentication resource configurationSearch the BusinessWorks project for XML Authentication resource definitions. This is typically configured in the BusinessWorks Designer or in application XML configuration files under authentication or security resource sections.Affected if XML Authentication resource is defined and active in the application
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Determine if both authentication methods are used togetherReview the application or service configuration to identify whether HTTP Basic Authentication policy and XML Authentication resource are both applied to the same endpoint or process. Check if requests can trigger both authentication mechanisms.Affected if HTTP Basic Authentication policy and XML Authentication resource are both enabled and applied together on the same HTTP endpoints
A user is affected if they are running BusinessWorks version 6.4.2 or lower AND have both HTTP Basic Authentication policy and XML Authentication resource configured and in use simultaneously on the same endpoints.
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 TIBCO ActiveMatrix BusinessWorks to a version newer than 6.4.2 that contains the security patch.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation10.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,392.
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-8990 — 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-2019-8990 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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