CVE-2020-4204
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 DB2 for Linux, UNIX and Windows (includes DB2 Connect Server) 9.7, 10.1, 10.5, 11.1, and 11.5 is vulnerable to a buffer overflow, caused by improper bounds checking which could allow a local attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system with root privileges. IBM X-Force ID: 174960.
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 confidenceA buffer overflow vulnerability in IBM DB2 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows versions 9.7 through 11.5, caused by improper bounds checking, allows a local attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system with root privileges.
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= 11.1= 11.5CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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 DB2 installation and versionRun the command 'db2level' or 'db2pd -version' on the system to retrieve the installed DB2 version and build level. On Linux/UNIX, you can also check '$INSTHOME/sqllib/DB2/version.xml' or the output of 'db2select' if available.Affected if The displayed version falls within the 9.7.x, 10.1.x, 10.5.x, 11.1.x, or 11.5.x release families (any sub-version within these major version branches).
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Confirm DB2 is running as root or with elevated privilegesCheck the process owner of the DB2 database manager instances. Run 'ps -ef | grep db2sysc' or inspect the DB2 Fenced ID setting in 'db2diag.log'. Also verify the instance owner account privileges.Affected if DB2 is running with root privileges or the instance owner has root-level system access, as the vulnerability allows code execution with root privileges.
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Verify DB2 is exposed on the local systemReview the system's DB2 configuration files in the instance directory (typically under $INSTHOME/sqllib/cfg/) and check the DB2 Administration Server (DAS) settings. Confirm which local users have DB2 administrative rights via 'db2 get admin cfg'.Affected if The DB2 instance is accessible to untrusted local users or the system has multiple local accounts with DB2 membership, creating an attack surface for a local attacker to exploit the buffer overflow.
A system is affected if it runs any IBM DB2 version 9.7.x, 10.1.x, 10.5.x, 11.1.x, or 11.5.x on Linux, UNIX, or Windows, with the DB2 instance running with root privileges and accessible to untrusted local users.
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 or fix pack for this vulnerability and restrict local system access to trusted, authorized users only.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-4204 — 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-2020-4204 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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