dbcve.org
SametimeApplication · Hcltech

CVE-2023-45696

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 12.0.2 or later.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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
Sametime is impacted by sensitive fields with autocomplete enabled in the Legacy web chat client. By default, this allows user entered data to be stored by the browser.

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

The IBM Sametime Legacy web chat client contains input fields with autocomplete enabled, allowing browsers to store sensitive user-entered data such as credentials or personal information in the browser's autocomplete cache.

MitigationAdd autocomplete="off" attribute to all sensitive input fields in the Legacy web chat client, particularly login fields and any form inputs that capture personal or authentication-related data.

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
SametimeApplication
Affected:>= 11.5, < 12.0.2

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/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 checks

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

  1. Identify installed Sametime version
    Locate the version of HCLtech Sametime installed in your environment. Check the server or client about information, installation directory version files, or product release notes.
    Affected if The installed version is HCLtech Sametime version 11.5 through 12.0.1 (meaning version 11.5 or higher but lower than 12.0.2)
  2. Confirm Legacy web chat client is in use
    Determine whether end users access Sametime through the Legacy web chat client interface. This is the older web-based chat interface that may be available alongside or instead of newer clients.
    Affected if The Legacy web chat client is actively used by users to access Sametime services
  3. Inspect login form HTML for autocomplete attribute
    Access the Sametime web login page in a browser, then view the page source or use browser developer tools (F12) to inspect the HTML of the login form. Examine the input elements for username and password fields.
    Affected if The input fields for credentials (username, password) do not have autocomplete="off" or autocomplete="new-password" attribute set
  4. Inspect chat input forms for autocomplete attribute
    Use browser developer tools to examine the HTML of input fields within the Legacy web chat client interface. Look for any form inputs that capture personal or authentication-related data.
    Affected if Sensitive input fields in the chat forms do not have autocomplete="off" attribute set

The environment is affected if the Sametime version is 11.5 or higher but lower than 12.0.2, the Legacy web chat client is in use, and sensitive input fields lack autocomplete=off protection.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 12.0.2 or later
Fixed in 12.0.2
Interim mitigation

Add autocomplete="off" attribute to all sensitive input fields in the Legacy web chat client, particularly login fields and any form inputs that capture personal or authentication-related data.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Sametime 12.0.2 or later

  1. 1. Identify all Sametime servers running version 11.5 through 12.0.1.
  2. 2. Schedule a maintenance window for the upgrade process.
  3. 3. Back up the current Sametime configuration and database.
  4. 4. Download Sametime version 12.0.2 or later from HCL Flexnet/Support Portal.
  5. 5. Install the upgrade following HCL Sametime upgrade documentation.
  6. 6. Verify that the Legacy web chat client no longer has autocomplete enabled on sensitive fields.
  7. 7. Test the web chat functionality to confirm normal operation.
  8. 8. Clear browser caches on client machines to remove any previously cached sensitive data.
Caveat Review HCL release notes for 12.0.2 to check for any configuration or feature changes that may affect your deployment

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

Fix this in Sametime Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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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-2023-45696 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