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CVE Record

CVE-2018-1669: IBM DataPower Gateway 7.1.0.0 - 7.1.0.23, 7.2.0.0 - 7.2.0.21, 7.5.0.0 - 7.5.0.16, 7.5.1.0 - 7.5.1.15, 7.5.2...

IBM DataPower Gateway 7.1.0.0 - 7.1.0.23, 7.2.0.0 - 7.2.0.21, 7.5.0.0 - 7.5.0.16, 7.5.1.0 - 7.5.1.15, 7.5.2.0 - 7.5.2.15, and 7.6.0.0 - 7.6.0.8 as well as IBM DataPower Gateway CD 7.7.0.0 - 7.7.1.2 are vulnerable to a XML External Entity Injection (XXE) attack when processing XML data. A remote attacker could exploit this vulnerability to expose sensitive information or consume memory resources. IBM X-Force ID: 144950.

HighCVSS 7.1Not KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysishigh

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

IBM DataPower Gateway versions listed in the advisory can mishandle XML in a way that may let a remote, low-privileged attacker read sensitive information or exhaust memory. For organizations using DataPower as an integration or API security gateway, the business risk is exposure of internal data and service disruption.

Executive priority

Prioritize remediation for internet-facing, partner-facing, or high-trust DataPower gateways. The issue affects a security and integration control point, so confidentiality impact can matter even without confirmed exploitation.

Technical view

CVE-2018-1669 is an XML External Entity injection issue in IBM DataPower Gateway and DataPower Gateway CD when processing XML data. The CVSS 3.0 score is 7.1 with network attack vector, low complexity, low privileges required, high confidentiality impact, and low availability impact.

Likely exposure

Exposure is likely limited to organizations running the affected IBM DataPower Gateway or DataPower Gateway CD version ranges and processing XML data, especially XML from external, partner, or lower-trust sources.

Exploitation context

The provided bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. CVSS exploit maturity is listed as unproven. The described attack requires network reachability to XML processing functionality and low privileges.

Researcher notes

Evidence supports XXE with sensitive information disclosure and memory consumption impacts. The bundle does not provide exploit details, fixed versions, or specific configuration mitigations. Use IBM advisory and X-Force as authoritative references for exact remediation guidance.

Mitigation direction

  • Identify all IBM DataPower Gateway and Gateway CD deployments.
  • Compare installed versions against the affected ranges in the IBM advisory.
  • Apply IBM-supported fixes or upgrades from the official IBM guidance.
  • Restrict XML-processing endpoints to trusted sources where business allows.
  • Review XML parser hardening guidance from IBM before changing parser behavior.

Validation and detection

  • Confirm the exact DataPower firmware version on each appliance or instance.
  • Verify whether each deployment processes XML from external or lower-trust users.
  • Check whether IBM’s fixed level has been applied successfully.
  • Review logs for unusual XML processing errors or memory pressure.
  • Document affected and remediated assets in vulnerability tracking.
Prepared
Confidence
high
Sources
4

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.

ATT&CK lookup starting points

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CVE-2018-1669 mapping review

Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
High
CVSS
7.1 (3.0)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.0/A:L/AC:L/AV:N/C:H/I:N/PR:L/S:U/UI:N/E:U/RC:C/RL:O

Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

1CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
3Source links

CVSS vector scores

1 official score

We collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.

ScoreVersionSeverityVectorExploitImpactSource
7.1CVSS 3.0HighCVSS:3.0/A:L/AC:L/AV:N/C:H/I:N/PR:L/S:U/UI:N/E:U/RC:C/RL:O2.84.2Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.0 score

7.1High
CVSS 3.0 vector shape for CVE-2018-1669Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.0/A:L/AC:L/AV:N/C:H/I:N/PR:L/S:U/UI:N/E:U/RC:C/RL:O

Attack Vector
NetworkAdjacentLocalPhysical
Attack Complexity
LowHigh
Privileges Required
NoneLowHigh
User Interaction
NoneRequired
Scope
ChangedUnchanged
Confidentiality Impact
HighLowNone
Integrity Impact
HighLowNone
Availability Impact
HighLowNone

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
IBMDataPower Gateways7.1.0.0, 7.1.0.23, 7.2.0.0, 7.2.0.21, 7.5.0.0, 7.5.1.0, 7.6.0.0, 7.5.2.0, 7.5.0.16, 7.5.1.15, 7.6.0.8, 7.5.2.15Listed
IBMDataPower Gateway CD7.7.0.0, 7.7.1.2Listed
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.