CVE-2020-4780
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 · uneditedOOTB build scripts does not set the secure attribute on session cookie which may impact IBM Curam Social Program Management 7.0.9 and 7.0,10. The purpose of the 'secure' attribute is to prevent cookies from being observed by unauthorized parties. IBM X-Force ID: 189158.
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 confidenceThe OOTB build scripts for IBM Curam Social Program Management 7.0.9 and 7.0.10 do not set the 'secure' attribute on session cookies. This allows session cookies to be transmitted over unencrypted HTTP connections, making them vulnerable to interception by unauthorized parties through network sniffing or man-in-the-middle 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= 7.0.9.0= 7.0.10.0CVSS 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
- Low
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/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 Curam SPM versionCheck the product version in the IBM Curam installation directory or by querying the application's about/version information. Common locations include installation logs, version.properties files, or the administration console.Affected if The installed version is exactly 7.0.9.0 or 7.0.10.0
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Locate OOTB build scriptsNavigate to the build script directory in the IBM Curam installation (typically under scripts/build or similar). Identify the original out-of-the-box build scripts used to deploy the application.Affected if Using the original unmodified build scripts from the affected versions (7.0.9.0 or 7.0.10.0)
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Inspect build scripts for secure cookie configurationOpen the build scripts and search for session cookie configuration, particularly looking for 'secure' attribute settings. Check files such as build.xml, build.properties, or deployment descriptors that handle session configuration.Affected if The build scripts do not contain configuration to set the 'secure' attribute on session cookies, or the attribute is explicitly set to false or missing
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Verify session cookie attributes in runtimeUse browser developer tools or a network sniffer to capture HTTP traffic during a session login. Inspect the Set-Cookie headers in the response to check if the session cookie includes the 'Secure' flag.Affected if Session cookies (JSESSIONID or similar) are sent without the 'Secure' attribute, allowing transmission over HTTP
You are affected if you are running exactly version 7.0.9.0 or 7.0.10.0 AND your session cookies are transmitted without the 'Secure' flag, enabling interception over unencrypted HTTP connections.
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 dataModify the build scripts or application server configuration to set the 'secure' flag on session cookies, ensuring they are only transmitted over encrypted HTTPS connections.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-4780 — 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-2020-4780 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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