CVE-2009-4150 in DB2 Universal Database
Summary
by MITRE
dasauto in IBM DB2 8 before FP18, 9.1 before FP8, 9.5 before FP4, and 9.7 before FP1 permits execution by unprivileged user accounts, which has unspecified impact and local attack vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/09/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2009-4150 represents a significant privilege escalation flaw within IBM DB2 database management systems across multiple versions. This issue affects DB2 8.0 before fix pack 18, 9.1 before fix pack 8, 9.5 before fix pack 4, and 9.7 before fix pack 1, specifically concerning the dasauto component which is responsible for automatic database server startup and management functions. The vulnerability arises from insufficient access controls and privilege validation mechanisms within the database administration services, allowing unauthorized local users to execute privileged operations that should only be accessible to system administrators or database owners.
The technical flaw stems from improper privilege checking within the dasauto service implementation, which fails to properly validate user credentials and access permissions before executing administrative commands. This weakness enables an unprivileged user account to leverage the service's functionality to perform operations that typically require elevated privileges, effectively bypassing the standard access control mechanisms that protect critical database operations. The vulnerability operates through local attack vectors where malicious users can exploit the service's design flaw without requiring network access or remote exploitation capabilities.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates serious security implications for organizations relying on IBM DB2 databases, as it allows local attackers to potentially gain unauthorized access to sensitive database operations and information. The unspecified impact mentioned in the CVE description suggests that the consequences could range from data manipulation and unauthorized access to complete system compromise depending on the specific environment and configuration. The local nature of the attack means that attackers must already have local system access, but once achieved, the privilege escalation could enable them to perform database administration tasks, access restricted data, or modify database configurations. This vulnerability directly relates to CWE-276, which addresses incorrect permissions for critical resources, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers local privilege escalation through service manipulation.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the appropriate fix packs for their DB2 versions, reviewing and hardening local system access controls, and implementing monitoring for unauthorized service execution attempts. System administrators should also consider restricting local user access to database management services and ensuring that only authorized personnel have the necessary privileges to perform administrative operations. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper privilege separation and access control validation in database management systems, particularly for services that handle administrative functions and maintain elevated system permissions. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar privilege escalation issues within database environments, as this flaw could potentially be exploited in combination with other local system vulnerabilities to achieve more extensive compromise of database infrastructure.