CVE-2023-35012
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) 11.5 with a Federated configuration is vulnerable to a stack-based buffer overflow, caused by improper bounds checking. A local user with SYSADM privileges could overflow the buffer and execute arbitrary code on the system. IBM X-Force ID: 257763.
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 confidenceIBM Db2 11.5 with Federated configuration contains a stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability caused by improper bounds checking. A local user with SYSADM privileges can overflow a buffer and potentially execute arbitrary code on the system.
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= 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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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Confirm Db2 version is 11.5Run 'db2level' or query 'SELECT SERVICE_LEVEL FROM SYSIBMADM.SYSENVIRONMENT' to retrieve the installed Db2 version.Affected if The installed version is IBM Db2 11.5 (any subversion). Other versions are not affected by this specific CVE.
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Verify Federated database functionality is enabledQuery the Db2 registry or configuration: 'db2set -all' and look for DB2_FMP_RUN_OS_AUTHENTICATION or check if federated servers are defined via 'SELECT * FROM SYSCAT.SERVERS' in the catalog.Affected if Federated configuration is enabled or federated servers exist in the Db2 catalog. The vulnerability only affects systems with Federated functionality configured.
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Check current user privilegesRun 'db2 GET AUTHORIZATIONS' or query 'SELECT GRANTEE, DBPATRIX FROM SYSCAT.DBAUTH' to identify users with SYSADM authority.Affected if The current user or any user on the system holds SYSADM privileges. The exploit requires SYSADM authority to be exploitable.
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Inspect Federated wrapper configurationQuery 'SELECT WRAPNAME, WRAPTYPE FROM SYSCAT.WRAPPERS' to see if any data source wrappers (like JDBC, ODBC) are defined, which indicates active Federated use.Affected if Federated wrappers are defined and actively used for querying remote data sources.
If running IBM Db2 11.5 with Federated configuration enabled and the user possesses SYSADM privileges, the environment is affected by CVE-2023-35012.
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 IBM's security patch for CVE-2023-35012 (contact IBM Support for Db2 11.5 patches). As a defense-in-depth measure, audit and restrict SYSADM privileges to trusted administrators only.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing8.0 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 $6,144.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-35012 — 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-2023-35012 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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