CVE-2019-4698 in Security Guardium Data Encryption
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Security Guardium Data Encryption (GDE) 3.0.0.2 does not require that users should have strong passwords by default, which makes it easier for attackers to compromise user accounts. IBM X-Force ID: 171929.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/11/2020
IBM Security Guardium Data Encryption version 3.0.0.2 contains a critical configuration flaw that undermines fundamental security practices by failing to enforce strong password requirements for user accounts. This vulnerability stems from the software's default settings which do not mandate robust authentication policies, creating an exploitable weakness that directly violates established security frameworks and industry best practices. The absence of mandatory strong password enforcement represents a significant deviation from security standards that require multi-factor authentication and complex credential policies to prevent unauthorized access.
The technical implementation flaw lies in the authentication subsystem's design where password complexity requirements are either completely disabled or configured as optional rather than mandatory parameters. This configuration allows users to create accounts with weak credentials such as simple numerical sequences, common dictionary words, or easily guessable patterns that significantly reduce the attack surface for credential-based attacks. The vulnerability specifically affects the user account provisioning process where default settings do not include mandatory password strength validation, enabling attackers to exploit this weakness through brute force, dictionary, or credential stuffing attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple account compromise as it creates persistent security risks within organizations that rely on Guardium for data encryption and access control. Attackers can leverage weak credentials to gain unauthorized access to sensitive data environments, potentially leading to data breaches, privilege escalation, and unauthorized modification of encryption policies. This weakness particularly affects organizations implementing zero-trust security models where strong authentication is fundamental to maintaining secure access controls. The vulnerability also creates compliance issues with regulatory frameworks such as pci dss, hipaa, and soc 2 that mandate strong authentication controls for protecting sensitive information.
Organizations utilizing IBM Security Guardium Data Encryption 3.0.0.2 should immediately implement manual configuration changes to enforce mandatory strong password policies, including minimum length requirements, complexity rules, and password history restrictions. The recommended mitigations include configuring the system to require passwords containing uppercase and lowercase letters, numeric characters, and special symbols, with minimum lengths of at least eight characters. Additionally, organizations should implement account lockout mechanisms after failed authentication attempts and establish regular password rotation policies. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-521 Weak Password Requirements and maps to ATT&CK technique T1110.003 Credential Stuffing, highlighting the importance of implementing robust authentication controls to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive data environments.