Overview
This report provides a detailed analysis of the recently discovered cybersecurity vulnerability CVE-2025-0165, which affects IBM Watsonx Orchestrate Cartridge for IBM Cloud Pak for Data. This vulnerability can potentially compromise system security and lead to data leakage, making it a critical concern for enterprises and individuals using IBM’s services. The implications of this vulnerability are far-reaching and thus require immediate attention and mitigation.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-0165
Severity: High (CVSS: 7.6)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: Successful exploitation could allow an attacker to view, add, modify, or delete information in the back-end database.
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
IBM Watsonx Orchestrate Cartridge for IBM Cloud Pak for Data | 4.8.4, 4.8.5, 5.0.0 – 5.2.0
How the Exploit Works
The exploit operates via a classic SQL injection attack, where the attacker sends specially crafted SQL statements through the network. These statements can manipulate the database, allowing the attacker to view, add, modify, or delete information. Due to a lack of proper input validation, the system processes these statements, resulting in the vulnerability.
Conceptual Example Code
Below is a conceptual example of how an attacker might exploit this vulnerability. This example is simplified and abstracted for illustrative purposes; real attacks may be more complex and require more detailed knowledge of the system.
POST /vulnerable/endpoint HTTP/1.1
Host: target.example.com
Content-Type: application/sql
{ "sql_statement": "INSERT INTO users (username, password) VALUES ('attacker', 'password');" }In this example, the attacker has crafted an SQL statement that adds a new user to the system, effectively creating a backdoor for future access.
Mitigation Guidance
Users are strongly recommended to apply the vendor-provided patch to mitigate this vulnerability. If this is not immediately possible, using a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can offer temporary mitigation by detecting and blocking malicious SQL statements.
