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Sterling Connect Direct Web ServicesApplication · Ibm

CVE-2024-39746

MEDIUM · 5.9 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-08-22
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
IBM Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services 6.0, 6.1, 6.2, and 6.3 could allow a remote attacker to obtain sensitive information, caused by the failure to properly enable HTTP Strict Transport Security. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability to obtain sensitive information using man in the middle techniques.

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 Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services versions 6.0-6.3 fail to properly enable HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS), a web security policy mechanism that forces browsers to use HTTPS connections. Without HSTS enabled, attackers performing man-in-the-middle attacks can downgrade or intercept encrypted communications to obtain sensitive information.

MitigationEnable HSTS on the IBM Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services server by configuring the web server to include the Strict-Transport-Security header in all HTTP responses.

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
Sterling Connect Direct Web ServicesApplication
Affected:= 6.0= 6.1.0= 6.2.0= 6.3.0

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/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 IBM Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services version
    Check the product version through the IBM administration console, installation directory, or by querying the web services endpoint. Common locations include /opt/IBM/cdirect or the installation manifest file.
    Affected if The installed version is 6.0, 6.1.0, 6.2.0, or 6.3.0.
  2. Locate the web server configuration file
    Identify the web server running IBM Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services (typically IBM HTTP Server or WebSphere). Find the httpd.conf or plugin-cfg.xml configuration file.
    Affected if The configuration file exists but does not contain Strict-Transport-Security header directives.
  3. Verify HSTS header configuration in web server
    Search the web server configuration for 'Strict-Transport-Security' or 'HSTS' directives. In Apache-style configs, look for 'Header always set Strict-Transport-Security'. In IHS, check the httpd.conf and plugin-cfg.xml.
    Affected if No HSTS header directive is configured or the directive is commented out.
  4. Test actual HTTP response for HSTS header
    Send an HTTPS request to the Connect:Direct Web Services endpoint using a browser's developer tools, curl -I https://<host>:<port>/, or a similar tool. Inspect the response headers for 'Strict-Transport-Security'.
    Affected if The Strict-Transport-Security header is missing from HTTPS responses.
  5. Confirm HSTS preload readiness if applicable
    Check if the HSTS header includes the 'preload' directive and verify the max-age value is at least 31536000 seconds (1 year).
    Affected if HSTS header is present but max-age is less than 31536000 or preload directive is missing.

A user is affected if they are running IBM Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services version 6.0-6.3 and the web server is not configured to send the Strict-Transport-Security header in HTTPS responses.

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

Enable HSTS on the IBM Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services server by configuring the web server to include the Strict-Transport-Security header in all HTTP responses.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence
  1. 1. Identify the web server hosting IBM Sterling Connect:Direct Web Services (e.g., IBM HTTP Server, WebSphere Application Server)
  2. 2. Access the web server configuration file (httpd.conf for IBM HTTP Server or web.xml/plugin-cfg.xml for WebSphere)
  3. 3. Enable HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) by adding the HSTS header directive
  4. 4. For IBM HTTP Server, add: Header always set Strict-Transport-Security "max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains"
  5. 5. For WebSphere, enable HSTS through the IBM HTTP Server front-end or WebSphere configuration
  6. 6. Set an appropriate max-age value (recommended: 31536000 seconds = 1 year)
  7. 7. Consider adding the preload directive if the domain is eligible for the HSTS preload list
  8. 8. Test the configuration to verify the Strict-Transport-Security header is returned in responses

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

Fix this in Sterling Connect Direct Web Services Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
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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-2024-39746 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