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IOperating system · Ibm

CVE-2025-33103

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-05-17
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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 i 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5, and 7.6 product IBM TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i contains a privilege escalation vulnerability. A malicious actor with command line access to the host operating system 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 TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i contains a privilege escalation vulnerability allowing a malicious actor with command line access to the host operating system to elevate privileges to root. The vulnerability exists in the IBM i versions 7.2 through 7.6.

MitigationApply IBM's security patches for the TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i to address the privilege escalation vulnerability. Restrict command line access to trusted personnel as an additional compensating control.

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
IOperating system
Affected:= 7.2= 7.3= 7.4= 7.5= 7.6

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
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 i version
    Run command 'DSPSYSVAL SYSVAL(QSYSDSTS)' or use 'WRKSYSVAL SYSVAL(QSYSDSTS)' to display system value, or check 'DSPOPT' for OS version. Alternatively, use 'WRKCFGSTS' and look for IBM i version in system information.
    Affected if The displayed version is 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5, or 7.6 (any version within the 7.2-7.6 range).
  2. Confirm TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i is installed
    Use the command 'GO LICPGM' (License Program) and look for product 5733TCU (TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities) in the installed programs list, or run 'DSPLICPGM LICPGM(5733TCU)' if known to be installed.
    Affected if The product 5733TCU (TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i) appears in the installed license program list.
  3. Check for command-line access exposure
    Review user profiles with special authority (*ALLOBJ, *SECADM) using 'WRKUSRPRF USRPRF(*ALL)' and examine system value QLMTSECA for restrictions. Check for users with access to PASE or QSH/QP2TERM.
    Affected if Multiple users or unrestricted profiles exist with command-line access (PASE, QSH, or QP2TERM) beyond trusted administrative personnel.
  4. Review TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities components in use
    Check for active TCP/IP connectivity utilities by reviewing IFS directories in /QIBM/ProdData/ and examining any user-defined applications that invoke utilities from this product.
    Affected if TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities executables or scripts in the product data directories are present and accessible to non-root users.

You are affected if your IBM i system runs version 7.2 through 7.6 AND has TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i installed 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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply IBM's security patches for the TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i to address the privilege escalation vulnerability. Restrict command line access to trusted personnel as an additional compensating control.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

IBM i 7.6 or apply IBM PTF for TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i (contact IBM support for specific PTF number)

  1. 1. Identify the current IBM i version by running 'DSPSFWRSC' or 'GO CMDPRTWTR' and checking the operating system release
  2. 2. Contact IBM support or access the IBM i PTF database to obtain the specific PTF (Program Temporary Fix) for IBM TCP/IP Connectivity Utilities for i that addresses CVE-2025-33103
  3. 3. Request and download the appropriate PTF for your specific IBM i version (7.2, 7.3, 7.4, or 7.5)
  4. 4. Apply the PTF using the 'LOADPTF' command or through System Service Tools (SST) / Dedicated Service Tools (DST)
  5. 5. After applying the PTF, verify the fix by checking the PTF status with 'DSPPTF' command and confirming the PTF is applied
  6. 6. If available, consider upgrading to IBM i 7.6 which may include the security fix
Caveat Upgrading to a new IBM i release may require application compatibility testing; PTF application is lower risk but should still be tested in non-production first

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

Fix this in I Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2025-33103 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