VulnerabilityPublished 24 Aug 2025Updated 26 Feb 2026

CVE-2025-36157: IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management · Incorrect Authorization

Affects IBM Engineering Lifecycle ManagementSource CVE Database V5

Compare

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 9.8 Critical.

Data as of 5 Nov 2026, 23:23 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

9.8Critical

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.6% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 50% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: High

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: High: There is total loss of availability, resulting in the attacker being able to fully deny access to resources in the impacted component; this loss is either sustained (while the attacker continues to deliver the attack) or persistent (the condition persists even after the attack has completed). Alternatively, the attacker has the ability to deny some availability, but the loss of availability presents a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component (e.g., the attacker cannot disrupt existing connections, but can prevent new connections; the attacker can repeatedly exploit a vulnerability that, in each instance of a successful attack, leaks a only small amount of memory, but after repeated exploitation causes a service to become completely unavailable).

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 24 Aug 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 5 Nov 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management	Affected =7.0.2 =7.0.3 =7.1.0	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2025-36157, organizations should immediately assess their IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management deployments to identify affected versions (7.0.2, 7.0.3, 7.1.0). Until official patches are released by IBM, implement strict network segmentation and firewall rules to restrict external access to ELM servers, limiting exposure to trusted internal networks only. Employ intrusion detection and prevention systems to monitor for unusual attempts to access or modify server property files. Review and harden access controls on configuration files and directories to prevent unauthorized modifications. Enable detailed logging and continuous monitoring of configuration changes to detect potential exploitation attempts early. Engage with IBM support for any available interim fixes or workarounds and plan for rapid deployment of official patches once released. Additionally, conduct security awareness training for administrators to recognize signs of exploitation and enforce the principle of least privilege for all users interacting with ELM systems.

Description

IBM Jazz Foundation 7.0.2 to 7.0.2 iFix035, 7.0.3 to 7.0.3 iFix018, and 7.1.0 to 7.1.0 iFix004 could allow an unauthenticated remote attacker to update server property files that would allow them to perform unauthorized actions.

Impact

The impact of CVE-2025-36157 is severe for organizations using IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management versions 7.0.2 to 7.1.0. Successful exploitation allows unauthenticated attackers to modify server property files, which can lead to unauthorized privilege escalation, configuration manipulation, and potentially full system takeover. This compromises the confidentiality of sensitive project and engineering data, the integrity of development lifecycle processes, and the availability of critical engineering management services. Organizations relying on IBM ELM for software development, project management, and lifecycle governance may face operational disruptions, intellectual property theft, and compliance violations. The vulnerability's network accessibility and lack of authentication requirements increase the risk of widespread exploitation, especially in environments exposed to the internet or insufficiently segmented networks. The absence of known exploits currently provides a limited window for mitigation, but the critical severity score underscores the urgency for remediation to avoid potential targeted attacks or automated exploitation campaigns.

Summary

CVE-2025-36157 is an incorrect authorization vulnerability (CWE-863) found in IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management (ELM) versions 7.0.2 through 7.1.0. The flaw allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to update server property files, which are critical configuration files controlling the behavior and security settings of the ELM server. By exploiting this vulnerability, an attacker can modify these files to escalate privileges, alter system configurations, or enable further unauthorized actions, potentially leading to full system compromise. The vulnerability does not require any prior authentication or user interaction, making it highly exploitable over the network. The CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 reflects the critical nature of this flaw, with attack vector being network-based, low attack complexity, no privileges required, and no user interaction needed. The impact spans confidentiality, integrity, and availability, as attackers can manipulate sensitive configuration data and disrupt normal operations. IBM has not yet released official patches or fixes at the time of this report, and no known exploits have been observed in the wild. However, the vulnerability's characteristics demand immediate attention from organizations using the affected versions of IBM ELM to prevent potential exploitation.

CWE-863Incorrect Authorization (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #17OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check.
Architecture and Design
Divide the product into anonymous, normal, privileged, and administrative areas. Reduce the attack surface by carefully mapping roles with data and functionality. Use role-based access control (RBAC) to enforce the roles at the appropriate boundaries.
Architecture and Design
Ensure that access control checks are performed related to the business logic. These checks may be different than the access control checks that are applied to more generic resources such as files, connections, processes, memory, and database records.
Architecture and Design · Libraries or Frameworks
Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.8 (opens in a new tab)
V13.4.2 (opens in a new tab)
V7.2.2 (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

ibm.com/support/pages/node/7242925 (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

Loading reviews…

Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 27 Feb 2026, 01:45 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-863

Technical details

References

Community reviews

Related threats