LiveActive security incident?Get immediate response
CVE Record

CVE-2020-4209: IBM Spectrum Protect Plus 10.1.0 through 10.1.5 could allow a remote attacker to traverse directories on th...

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus 10.1.0 through 10.1.5 could allow a remote attacker to traverse directories on the system. An attacker could send a specially-crafted URL request containing "dot dot" sequences (/../) to create arbitrary files on the system. IBM X-Force ID: 175019.

MediumCVSS 5.4Not KEV-listedUpdated
Discuss exposureBack to CVEs
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus versions 10.1.0 through 10.1.5 have a directory traversal flaw. A remote attacker with low privileges could use crafted URL paths to create files outside intended directories, potentially disrupting the system or altering limited data.

Executive priority

Schedule remediation in the normal vulnerability cycle, faster for internet-exposed or broadly accessible deployments. The issue is not marked as actively exploited, but it affects backup infrastructure, where integrity and availability matter.

Technical view

CVE-2020-4209 is a network-reachable path traversal issue involving dot-dot path sequences in IBM Spectrum Protect Plus. The CVSS 3.0 score is 5.4, with low attack complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction, low integrity impact, and low availability impact.

Likely exposure

Exposure is limited to organizations running IBM Spectrum Protect Plus 10.1.0 through 10.1.5, especially where the application is reachable over the network by low-privileged users.

Exploitation context

The source bundle does not report active exploitation. KEV is false, and the CVSS exploit maturity is Unproven. Treat this as a remediation and exposure-reduction issue unless internal telemetry shows suspicious file creation or traversal activity.

Researcher notes

The public record identifies directory traversal leading to arbitrary file creation, but the bundle does not include detailed vulnerable endpoints, fixed versions, or exploit artifacts. Keep analysis tied to IBM’s advisory and X-Force entry.

Mitigation direction

  • Identify any IBM Spectrum Protect Plus 10.1.0 through 10.1.5 deployments.
  • Review IBM’s advisory for supported fixes or upgrade guidance.
  • Restrict network access to Spectrum Protect Plus management interfaces.
  • Limit low-privileged account access to trusted users only.
  • Monitor for unexpected file creation in application-controlled paths.

Validation and detection

  • Confirm installed Spectrum Protect Plus versions against the affected range.
  • Check whether the service is reachable from untrusted networks.
  • Review application and web logs for traversal-pattern requests.
  • Look for unexpected files created near application directories.
  • Verify remediation against IBM’s published advisory.
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

Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.

cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2020-4209 mapping review

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

Open ATT&CK lookup
Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Medium
CVSS
5.4 (3.0)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.0/I:L/S:U/PR:L/UI:N/C:N/A:L/AV:N/AC:L/RC:C/E:U/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
5.4CVSS 3.0MediumCVSS:3.0/I:L/S:U/PR:L/UI:N/C:N/A:L/AV:N/AC:L/RC:C/E:U/RL:O2.82.5Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.0 score

5.4Medium
CVSS 3.0 vector shape for CVE-2020-4209Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.0/I:L/S:U/PR:L/UI:N/C:N/A:L/AV:N/AC:L/RC:C/E:U/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
IBMSpectrum Protect Plus10.1.0, 10.1.5Listed
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

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