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CVE Record

CVE-2021-20557: IBM Security Guardium 11.2 could allow a remote authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the...

IBM Security Guardium 11.2 could allow a remote authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the system by sending a specially crafted request. IBM X-Force ID: 199184.

HighCVSS 7.2Not KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysishigh

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

IBM Security Guardium 11.2 has a high-severity flaw that could let a remote authenticated user with high privileges run commands on the appliance by sending a crafted request. The sources do not show confirmed active exploitation, but successful abuse could compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Executive priority

Treat as a high-priority remediation item for any Guardium 11.2 deployment, especially if privileged accounts are broadly shared or management access is widely reachable. It is not KEV-listed in the provided data, but impact is severe if abused.

Technical view

CVE-2021-20557 affects IBM Security Guardium 11.2. The CVSS 3.0 score is 7.2 with network attack vector, low attack complexity, no user interaction, high privileges required, and high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability. IBM X-Force tracks it as ID 199184.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most likely where IBM Security Guardium 11.2 is deployed and reachable by authenticated high-privilege users. Risk is lower than unauthenticated flaws, but high-impact because abuse can execute arbitrary commands on the system.

Exploitation context

The provided sources do not support active exploitation. CISA KEV status is false, and the CVSS vector lists exploit maturity as unproven. The vulnerability requires remote access plus high privileges, so insider, compromised admin, or privileged account misuse scenarios matter most.

Researcher notes

Evidence is limited to the CVE record, IBM advisory reference, and IBM X-Force entry. The bundle does not include request details, affected subcomponents, public proof of concept, or exact fixed build. Avoid assuming exploitability beyond authenticated high-privilege command execution.

Mitigation direction

  • Review IBM advisory 6455269 for fixed levels or interim fixes.
  • Apply IBM-supported remediation for Guardium 11.2 when available.
  • Limit affected system access to necessary privileged administrators.
  • Harden and monitor privileged Guardium accounts.
  • Keep Guardium management access off untrusted networks.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory IBM Security Guardium deployments and confirm versions.
  • Flag any deployment running Guardium 11.2 as potentially affected.
  • Verify whether IBM advisory remediation has been applied.
  • Review privileged account activity around Guardium systems.
  • Check logs for unusual authenticated requests or command execution indicators.
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-2021-20557 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
7.2 (3.0)
Known Exploited
No
Published

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

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
7.2CVSS 3.0HighCVSS:3.0/I:H/S:U/AC:L/A:H/C:H/UI:N/AV:N/PR:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C1.25.9Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.0 score

7.2High
CVSS 3.0 vector shape for CVE-2021-20557Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

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

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
IBMSecurity Guardium11.2Listed
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

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