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Storage ScaleApplication · Ibm

CVE-2024-31891

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.1.9.7 / 5.2.2.0 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
IBM Storage Scale GUI 5.1.9.0 through 5.1.9.6 and 5.2.0.0 through 5.2.1.1 contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability. A malicious actor with command line access to the 'scalemgmt' user can elevate privileges to gain root access to the host operating system.

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 Storage Scale GUI versions 5.1.9.0-5.1.9.6 and 5.2.0.0-5.2.1.1 contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability where a user with command-line access to the low-privileged 'scalemgmt' account can gain root access to the underlying host operating system.

MitigationApply vendor-provided security patches for IBM Storage Scale when available. Until patched, strictly limit access to the scalemgmt user account and monitor for any unauthorized access attempts.

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
Storage ScaleApplication
Affected:>= 5.1.9.0, < 5.1.9.7>= 5.2.0.0, < 5.2.2.0

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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 checks

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

  1. Verify IBM Storage Scale installation
    Run the command to display the installed IBM Storage Scale version (for example, 'rpm -q ibm-spectrum-scale-gui' or check the product version via 'lsrpkg' or 'lslpp' depending on your system).
    Affected if The command fails to return a version or the product is not installed.
  2. Compare installed version to affected ranges
    Match the installed version against the affected ranges: 5.1.9.0 through 5.1.9.6, or 5.2.0.0 through 5.2.1.1. Versions 5.1.9.7 and above, or 5.2.2.0 and above are fixed.
    Affected if The installed version falls within 5.1.9.0-5.1.9.6 or 5.2.0.0-5.2.1.1.
  3. Confirm scalemgmt user account exists
    Check if the 'scalemgmt' user exists on the system (for example, 'id scalemgmt' or look in /etc/passwd).
    Affected if The scalemgmt user account is present on the system.
  4. Check scalemgmt user access method
    Verify whether command-line access to the scalemgmt account is possible (check /etc/shadow permissions, SSH configuration, or su/sudo access).
    Affected if Non-root users can obtain a command-line shell or execute commands as the scalemgmt user.

You are affected if IBM Storage Scale GUI is installed with a version between 5.1.9.0-5.1.9.6 or 5.2.0.0-5.2.1.1 AND the scalemgmt user account exists with command-line access available to untrusted 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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.1.9.7 / 5.2.2.0 or later
Fixed in 5.1.9.75.2.2.0
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-provided security patches for IBM Storage Scale when available. Until patched, strictly limit access to the scalemgmt user account and monitor for any unauthorized access attempts.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to Storage Scale 5.1.9.7 (minimum) or 5.2.2.0 (minimum) depending on your current branch

  1. 1. Back up all critical data and configurations according to IBM Storage Scale backup procedures
  2. 2. Download IBM Storage Scale version 5.1.9.7 (for systems currently on 5.1.9.x) or version 5.2.2.0 (for systems currently on 5.2.x) from IBM Fix Central or your authorized IBM support channel
  3. 3. Stop all IBM Storage Scale GUI services before applying the upgrade
  4. 4. Apply the upgrade package using IBM's standard installation/upgrade procedures (smupgrade or equivalent method for your deployment
  5. 5. After upgrade completion, verify the GUI version reflects the fixed release (5.1.9.7 or 5.2.2.0)
  6. 6. Confirm the 'scalemgmt' user no longer has privilege escalation capability by reviewing any security configuration changes in the release notes
  7. 7. Restart Storage Scale services and validate normal operation
Caveat Review IBM Storage Scale release notes for version-specific changes; upgrades between minor versions typically have minimal breaking changes but test in non-production first

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

Fix this in Storage Scale Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2024-31891 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