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Websphere Application ServerApplication · Ibm

CVE-2025-36038

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-06-25
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 8.5.5.28 / 9.0.5.25 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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 WebSphere Application Server 8.5 and 9.0 could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system with a specially crafted sequence of serialized objects.

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 WebSphere Application Server 8.5 and 9.0 contains a Java deserialization vulnerability where a remote attacker can send specially crafted serialized objects to achieve arbitrary code execution on the affected server. This is a critical remote code execution (RCE) vulnerability exploitable without authentication.

MitigationApply the IBM security patch for this vulnerability immediately; in the interim, restrict network access to WebSphere ports and consider disabling Java deserialization on exposed endpoints if feasible.

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
Websphere Application ServerApplication
Affected:>= 8.5, < 8.5.5.28>= 9.0, < 9.0.5.25

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
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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. Locate the WebSphere installation directory
    Check common installation paths such as /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer (Linux/Unix) or C:\Program Files\IBM\WebSphere\AppServer (Windows). Use the command 'find /opt -name versionInfo.xml 2>/dev/null' or check the IBM Installation Manager registry.
    Affected if The installation directory cannot be found or the product is not IBM WebSphere Application Server.
  2. Identify the installed WebSphere version and fix pack level
    In the installation root directory, locate and read the properties/version files (e.g., properties/version/WAS.product or properties/version.txt). Alternatively, run 'versionInfo.sh' (Linux/Unix) or 'versionInfo.bat' (Windows) from the bin directory. Look for the version and fix pack number in the output.
    Affected if The version is 8.5.x with fix pack below 28, or version 9.0.x with fix pack below 25.
  3. Verify the exact version string against the vulnerability range
    Parse the version output. For 8.5.x, ensure the full version is 8.5.5.28 or higher. For 9.0.x, ensure the full version is 9.0.5.25 or higher. Compare your installed build number (e.g., 8.5.5.0 through 8.5.5.27 are vulnerable; 9.0.0.0 through 9.0.5.24 are vulnerable).
    Affected if The installed version falls within >= 8.5, < 8.5.5.28 OR >= 9.0, < 9.0.5.25.
  4. Confirm WebSphere administrative ports are accessible (exposure assessment)
    Check the WebSphere configuration files (serverindex.xml or ports.props) or access the Administrative Console to identify open ports (default: 9060 for admin console, 9080 for default HTTP endpoint). Use 'netstat -an | grep -E "9060|9080"' or review the server.xml for connector definitions.
    Affected if Administrative and runtime ports are reachable from untrusted networks (the vulnerability is exploitable over the network without authentication).

You are affected if your installed IBM WebSphere Application Server version is 8.5.x before fix pack 28 or 9.0.x before fix pack 25, and the administrative ports are network-accessible.

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 8.5.5.28 / 9.0.5.25 or later
Fixed in 8.5.5.289.0.5.25
Interim mitigation

Apply the IBM security patch for this vulnerability immediately; in the interim, restrict network access to WebSphere ports and consider disabling Java deserialization on exposed endpoints if feasible.

Recommended fix High confidence

IBM WebSphere Application Server 8.5.5.28 (for 8.5.x line) or 9.0.5.25 (for 9.0.x line)

  1. 1. Back up your current WebSphere Application Server configuration and all deployed applications.
  2. 2. Download the appropriate IBM WebSphere Application Server fix pack: For 8.5.x, download version 8.5.5.28 or later; For 9.0.x, download version 9.0.5.25 or later.
  3. 3. Stop all WebSphere Application Server processes running on the target system.
  4. 4. Install the fix pack using the IBM Installation Manager or the update installer appropriate for your installation type.
  5. 5. After installation, verify the fix pack version matches the target (8.5.5.28+ or 9.0.5.25+) by checking the installed version in the administrative console or via command line.
  6. 6. Start the WebSphere Application Server processes.
  7. 7. Test critical applications to ensure functionality is preserved after the upgrade.
  8. 8. Verify the fix is applied by checking for the absence of the deserialization vulnerability or by reviewing IBM fix list documentation.
Caveat Standard WebSphere upgrade precautions apply: review application compatibility with the new fix pack, test in non-production first, and ensure you have a rollback plan

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

Fix this in Websphere Application Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing10.0 h
  • Review / QA6.0 h
34.0 hours of engineering $5,940
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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-2025-36038 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