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Infosphere Information ServerApplication · Ibm

CVE-2023-33843

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-21
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 InfoSphere Information Server 11.7 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: 256544.

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 confidence

IBM InfoSphere Information Server 11.7 contains a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in its Web UI. Attackers can embed malicious JavaScript code into the web interface that executes in the context of other users' sessions, potentially leading to credential disclosure through session hijacking within trusted sessions.

MitigationImplement robust input validation and output encoding for all user-supplied data in the Web UI. Apply Content Security Policy (CSP) headers and upgrade to IBM's patched version when available.

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
Infosphere Information ServerApplication
Affected:= 11.7

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 installed IBM InfoSphere Information Server version
    Locate the IBM InfoSphere Information Server installation and check its version number. Common methods include: reviewing installation directories, checking product-specific version files, or using IBM installation manager to query installed packages.
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 11.7 (the affected version indicated by = in the advisory)
  2. Confirm Web UI component is accessible
    Verify that the Web UI interface for IBM InfoSphere Information Server is enabled and accessible. This typically involves checking if the web-based administration console or user interface ports are open and responding.
    Affected if The Web UI is enabled and reachable - the XSS vulnerability exists specifically within this component
  3. Identify user-facing input fields in Web UI
    Access the Web UI and enumerate forms, input fields, or user-controllable data entry points where content can be submitted and stored. These include user profile fields, comments, descriptions, or any feature that stores and later displays user-supplied data.
    Affected if The Web UI contains stored input fields that accept and display user-supplied content without apparent sanitization
  4. Verify vulnerable code path exists
    Examine if the Web UI renders stored content back to users without proper output encoding. Submit test input with HTML/script characters and check if they are rendered as-is when viewed by other users or in different contexts.
    Affected if Stored input is reflected in the Web UI without encoding, allowing embedded JavaScript to execute in other users' sessions

You are affected if IBM InfoSphere Information Server version 11.7 is installed and its Web UI component is enabled, with stored input fields that do not properly encode output.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Implement robust input validation and output encoding for all user-supplied data in the Web UI. Apply Content Security Policy (CSP) headers and upgrade to IBM's patched version when available.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

IBM InfoSphere Information Server 11.7 with security patch (check IBM Support for specific patch number)

  1. 1. Access the IBM Support Portal at support.ibm.com and search for CVE-2023-33843 or IBM X-Force ID 256544
  2. 2. Download the security patch or interim fix for IBM InfoSphere Information Server 11.7
  3. 3. Review the patch installation instructions provided in the IBM security bulletin
  4. 4. Apply the patch according to IBM's standard patching procedures for InfoSphere Information Server
  5. 5. Verify the patch was applied successfully by checking the installed version or consulting IBM's documentation
Caveat Test the patch in a non-production environment before applying to production, as IBM patches may have dependencies or side effects

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Infosphere Information Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
32.0 hours of engineering $5,600
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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-2023-33843 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