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Content NavigatorApplication · Ibm

CVE-2021-20549

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-04-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable

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 · unedited
IBM Content Navigator 3.0.CD is vulnerable to cross-site scripting. This vulnerability allows users to embed arbitrary JavaScript code in the Web UI thus altering the intended functionality potentially leading to credentials disclosure within a trusted session. IBM X-Force ID: 199167.

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 confidence

IBM Content Navigator 3.0.CD is vulnerable to stored cross-site scripting (XSS), allowing attackers to embed arbitrary JavaScript code into the Web UI. When other users access the compromised interface, the injected script executes within their trusted session, potentially enabling credential disclosure and session hijacking.

MitigationApply the IBM patch or upgrade to a fixed version of Content Navigator. Additionally, implement output encoding and input validation as compensating controls until the vendor patch can be deployed.

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
Content NavigatorApplication
Affected:= 3.0.0

CVSS 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
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify if IBM Content Navigator is installed
    Check your system for IBM Content Navigator installation directories, services, or applications named 'IBM Content Navigator' or 'ICN'
    Affected if IBM Content Navigator software is found on the system
  2. Determine the installed version
    Use the IBM navigator administration interface, check installed programs list, or query the navigator version information typically found in About or Version sections of the admin console
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 3.0.0 (the only version listed as affected)
  3. Verify the Web UI is enabled
    Access the IBM Content Navigator web interface URL (typically /navigator/) through a browser or verify the web application is running via admin console
    Affected if The Web UI is accessible and users can log in to the interface

You are affected if IBM Content Navigator version 3.0.0 is installed and its Web UI is accessible to users.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the IBM patch or upgrade to a fixed version of Content Navigator. Additionally, implement output encoding and input validation as compensating controls until the vendor patch can be deployed.

Fix this in Content Navigator Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-20549 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data