CVE-2016-2865 in Rational Team Concert
Summary
by MITRE
The GIT Integration component in IBM Rational Team Concert (RTC) 5.x before 5.0.2 iFix14 and 6.x before 6.0.1 iFix5 and Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management 5.x before 5.0.2 iFix14 and 6.x before 6.0.1 iFix5 allows remote authenticated users to obtain sensitive information via a malformed request.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/27/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-2865 affects the GIT Integration component within IBM Rational Team Concert and Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management products across multiple version ranges. This issue represents a sensitive information disclosure vulnerability that impacts the security posture of development environments relying on these collaboration platforms. The vulnerability specifically targets the handling of malformed requests within the GIT integration functionality, which serves as a critical interface for version control operations within the development lifecycle management ecosystem.
The technical flaw resides in the insufficient input validation and error handling mechanisms within the GIT Integration component. When remote authenticated users submit malformed requests to the affected systems, the component fails to properly sanitize or validate the incoming data structures. This processing gap allows attackers to craft specific request patterns that can trigger unintended information disclosure behaviors. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and leverages the existing authentication mechanisms to gain access to sensitive data that should remain protected within the system boundaries. The flaw demonstrates characteristics consistent with CWE-20, which describes improper input validation, and CWE-215, which addresses information exposure through error messages.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data leakage to potentially compromise the integrity of development workflows and intellectual property. Remote authenticated attackers who can exploit this vulnerability may access repository metadata, commit histories, user information, and potentially source code fragments that are not intended for public viewing. This information disclosure can facilitate more sophisticated attacks by providing attackers with insights into development practices, code structures, and team collaboration patterns. The vulnerability affects organizations using IBM Rational Team Concert and Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management in enterprise development environments where sensitive project information and proprietary code reside. The impact is particularly concerning in regulated industries where compliance requirements mandate strict control over information access and disclosure.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided iFix updates for the affected versions of IBM Rational Team Concert and Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management. The security patches address the input validation gaps and improve the error handling mechanisms within the GIT Integration component. Network segmentation and access controls should be enforced to limit the scope of potential exploitation, while monitoring systems should be enhanced to detect anomalous request patterns that may indicate attempted exploitation. Security teams should also conduct thorough reviews of access controls and authentication mechanisms to ensure that only authorized users can submit requests to the GIT Integration component. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1083, which covers discovery of files and directories, and T1005, which addresses data from local system, as attackers may use this vulnerability to gather information about the system's configuration and data structures.