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Robotic Process Automation For Cloud PakApplication · Ibm

CVE-2024-51457

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-01-22
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 21.0.7.20 / 23.0.20 or later.
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 Robotic Process Automation for Cloud Pak 21.0.0 through 21.0.7.19 and 23.0.0 through 23.0.19 is vulnerable to cross-site scripting. This vulnerability allows an authenticated user to embed arbitrary JavaScript code in the Web UI thus altering the intended functionality potentially leading to credentials disclosure within a trusted session.

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 Robotic Process Automation for Cloud Pak versions 21.0.0-21.0.7.19 and 23.0.0-23.0.19 contain a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Web UI. An authenticated attacker can embed malicious JavaScript code that executes in the browsers of other users viewing the affected UI, potentially hijacking sessions and exfiltrating credentials within trusted sessions.

MitigationApply IBM security patches for the affected versions (21.0.7.20+ or 23.0.20+) and validate that output encoding is properly implemented in all user-supplied data paths within the Web UI.

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
Robotic Process Automation For Cloud PakApplication
Affected:>= 21.0.0, < 21.0.7.20>= 23.0.0, < 23.0.20

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. Check installed IBM RPA version
    Access the IBM RPA admin console or use the product's version command to retrieve the currently installed version number. Compare this against the affected ranges: 21.0.0-21.0.7.19 or 23.0.0-23.0.19.
    Affected if The installed version falls within 21.0.0 through 21.0.7.19, or within 23.0.0 through 23.0.19.
  2. Verify Web UI is enabled
    Log into the IBM RPA administration interface and confirm whether the Web UI component is currently active and accessible to users.
    Affected if The Web UI is enabled and accessible.
  3. Identify user input fields in Web UI
    Navigate through the Web UI interface and locate any input fields, forms, or text entry areas where authenticated users can submit data that gets stored and displayed to other users.
    Affected if User input fields exist that store and display content to other users.
  4. Inspect session handling
    Review the Web UI session management configuration to confirm that user sessions rely on cookies or credentials that could be targeted by XSS-based session hijacking.
    Affected if The Web UI uses session cookies or relies on credentials that could be accessed via malicious JavaScript.

You are affected if your IBM RPA for Cloud Pak version is 21.0.0-21.0.7.19 or 23.0.0-23.0.19 AND the Web UI is enabled with user input fields that accept and display stored content to other 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 21.0.7.20 / 23.0.20 or later
Fixed in 21.0.7.2023.0.20
Interim mitigation

Apply IBM security patches for the affected versions (21.0.7.20+ or 23.0.20+) and validate that output encoding is properly implemented in all user-supplied data paths within the Web UI.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to 21.0.7.20 or later, or 23.0.20 or later based on your current major version branch

  1. Back up the current IBM Robotic Process Automation for Cloud Pak installation and configuration
  2. Review the IBM Robotic Process Automation upgrade documentation for your current version
  3. Perform the upgrade to version 21.0.7.20 or later (if on 21.x line), or to version 23.0.20 or later (if on 23.x line)
  4. After upgrade, verify that the Web UI functions correctly and the XSS vulnerability is resolved
  5. Confirm the fix by testing that arbitrary JavaScript code can no longer be embedded in the Web UI

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

Fix this in Robotic Process Automation For Cloud Pak 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
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2024-51457 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