CVE-2016-6092 in Tivoli Key Lifecycle Manager
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Tivoli Key Lifecycle Manager 2.0.1, 2.5, and 2.6 stores user credentials in plain in clear text which can be read by a local user.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/11/2020
IBM Tivoli Key Lifecycle Manager version 2.0.1, 2.5, and 2.6 contains a critical security flaw that allows local users to access stored credentials in plain text format. This vulnerability represents a fundamental failure in credential storage security practices and creates a significant attack surface for malicious actors with local system access. The flaw enables unauthorized local users to directly read sensitive authentication information without requiring additional exploitation techniques or privilege escalation. The vulnerability directly maps to CWE-312, which specifically addresses the exposure of sensitive information through cleartext storage, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1552.001 for unsecured credentials storage. The affected versions of IBM Tivoli Key Lifecycle Manager implement insecure credential handling by storing authentication tokens and passwords in readable format within system files or configuration repositories, making them immediately accessible to any user with local access to the system. This creates a severe risk for organizations that rely on these systems for key management operations, as local attackers can obtain administrative credentials and potentially escalate their privileges to gain full control over the key management infrastructure. The impact extends beyond simple credential theft to include potential compromise of entire cryptographic key management processes, which could lead to widespread data encryption and decryption failures throughout the organization's security ecosystem. Organizations using these vulnerable versions face significant risk of unauthorized access to critical cryptographic assets, with the potential for data breaches and system compromise. The vulnerability's exploitation requires minimal technical skill and provides immediate access to sensitive authentication information, making it particularly dangerous in environments where local access is not strictly controlled. Security professionals should consider this issue as a high-priority remediation target due to its direct impact on system integrity and the ease with which it can be exploited by local adversaries. The flaw demonstrates a critical gap in IBM's secure coding practices and highlights the importance of proper credential handling mechanisms in security-critical applications. Organizations should immediately implement mitigations including system hardening, access controls, and credential rotation procedures while planning for official patches from IBM to address this vulnerability. The long-term solution requires comprehensive security reviews of all credential storage mechanisms within the Tivoli Key Lifecycle Manager framework and implementation of proper encryption for sensitive data at rest. This vulnerability underscores the necessity of following security best practices such as those outlined in NIST SP 800-57 for cryptographic key management and demonstrates the critical importance of avoiding cleartext storage of authentication information in any security-sensitive application.