CVE-2025-55109
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 · uneditedAn authentication bypass vulnerability exists in the out-of-support Control-M/Agent versions 9.0.18 to 9.0.20 and potentially earlier unsupported versions when using an empty or default kdb keystore or a default PKCS#12 keystore. A remote attacker with access to a signed third-party or demo certificate for client authentication can bypass the need for a certificate signed by the certificate authority of the organization during authentication on the Control-M/Agent. The Control-M/Agent contains hardcoded certificates which are only trusted as fallback if an empty kdb keystore is used; they are never trusted if a PKCS#12 keystore is used. All of these certificates are now expired. In addition, the Control-M/Agent default kdb and PKCS#12 keystores contain trusted third-party certificates (external recognized CAs and default self-signed demo certificates) which are trusted for client authentication.
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 confidenceControl-M/Agent versions 9.0.18-9.0.20 contain hardcoded fallback certificates and include trusted third-party/demo certificates in default kdb and PKCS#12 keystores, allowing remote attackers with any signed third-party or demo certificate to bypass organizational CA authentication requirements.
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<= 9.0.22CVSS 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
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed Control-M/Agent versionRun 'ctmversion' or check the Control-M/Agent version through the management interface or installation directoryAffected if Version is 9.0.18 through 9.0.22 (or any version <= 9.0.22) as these contain the vulnerable default keystores
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Locate default kdb keystore filesSearch for .kdb files in the Control-M/Agent installation directory, typically under <install_dir>/ctm_ssl/ or <install_dir>/security/Affected if Default kdb keystore files exist and contain third-party or demo certificates issued by well-known demo CAs
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Inspect certificates in kdb keystoresUse 'gskcapicmd' or similar keytool to list certificates in the default kdb keystore and check for issuer names such as demo, test, or third-party CAsAffected if Keystore contains certificates signed by demo/third-party CAs (e.g., DigiCert demo, Thawte test, or similar)
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Locate default PKCS#12 keystore filesSearch for .p12 or .pfx files in the Control-M/Agent default installation and configuration directoriesAffected if Default PKCS#12 keystore files exist and contain certificates from non-organizational CAs
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Check SSL configuration for fallback certificatesReview Control-M/Agent SSL/TLS configuration files for hardcoded certificate references or fallback trust settingsAffected if Configuration explicitly trusts demo certificates or includes hardcoded fallback certificate entries
A user is affected if their Control-M/Agent version is 9.0.22 or lower AND the default kdb or PKCS#12 keystores contain any third-party, demo, or test certificates that are not part of their organization's CA hierarchy.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scopedReplace default keystores with properly configured keystores containing only organization-specific CA certificates, and upgrade to a supported Control-M version.
Control-M/Agent version 9.0.23 or later
- 1. Identify the current Control-M/Agent version by running: ctmversion or checking the installation directory
- 2. Review the Control-M/Agent deployment to confirm all agents are at version 9.0.22 or below
- 3. Plan upgrade to Control-M/Agent version 9.0.23 or later, which contains the security fix for this vulnerability
- 4. Before upgrading, back up all existing configuration files, kdb keystores, and PKCS#12 keystores
- 5. Download the latest Control-M/Agent installation package from the BMC Electronic Product Distribution site or BMC Customer Support portal
- 6. Stop the Control-M/Agent services on all affected systems using: ctmstop or systemctl stop ctm_agent
- 7. Install the upgraded Agent version following standard BMC deployment procedures
- 8. After upgrade, regenerate or configure new keystores with certificates signed by your organization's Certificate Authority
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing12.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-55109 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-55109 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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