CVE-2025-36045 in TS4300
Summary
by MITRE • 09/18/2026
IBM TS4300 1.1.0.1 through 1.7.1.1 could allow an authenticated user to cause a denial of service in the email service due to improper control of interaction frequency.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/18/2026
The vulnerability identified within IBM TS4300 tape library firmware versions ranging from 1.1.0.1 through 1.7.1.1 represents a significant reliability concern for enterprise storage environments that rely on automated email notifications for operational alerts and maintenance logs. This specific flaw is categorized under CWE-289, which denotes Authentication Bypass by Alternate Name or ID, although in this context it more accurately aligns with CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption due to improper control of interaction frequency. The core technical issue lies within the email service module responsible for dispatching notification messages regarding library status, tape health, and administrative events. When an authenticated user interacts with the system's management interface or API endpoints related to email configuration or testing, there is a lack of adequate rate limiting mechanisms in place. This absence allows a malicious actor who has obtained valid credentials to send a high volume of requests designed to trigger email generation at a rapid pace.
From a technical perspective, the vulnerability stems from insufficient validation and throttling logic within the application layer handling SMTP or internal mail relay functions. The system does not enforce strict limits on the number of emails that can be queued or sent per unit of time by a single authenticated session. Consequently, an attacker can exploit this lack of control to exhaust available system resources such as CPU cycles, memory buffers, and network bandwidth associated with the email service process. This leads to a denial of service condition where legitimate administrative notifications are delayed or dropped entirely, effectively blinding administrators to critical hardware failures or security events occurring within the tape library infrastructure. The impact is particularly severe in environments where real-time alerting is essential for maintaining data integrity and availability through timely intervention during drive errors or media degradation.
In terms of operational impact, this vulnerability undermines the reliability of the monitoring and alerting subsystems that are critical to storage area network management. If an attacker successfully triggers a denial of service against the email service, they can create a window of opportunity for further malicious activities without detection via standard notification channels. This aligns with ATT&CK technique T1496: Resource Hijacking, where resources are consumed to degrade performance or availability, and potentially supports lateral movement if other services depend on successful mail delivery for authentication tokens or password resets. The exploitation requires authenticated access, which raises the barrier to entry but also means that any compromised account within the management network can be leveraged to disrupt operational continuity. This is particularly dangerous in shared administrative environments where credential hygiene may vary among different teams or contractors managing the storage infrastructure.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily involve applying the latest firmware updates provided by IBM, which address the improper control of interaction frequency through enhanced rate limiting and input validation logic within the email service module. Administrators should ensure that all TS4300 units are updated to version 1.7.1.2 or later where these controls have been implemented. In addition to patching, organizations should implement network-level protections such as firewall rules or intrusion prevention system policies that restrict outbound SMTP traffic from the management interface to known and trusted mail servers only. This reduces the attack surface by limiting the ability of an attacker to abuse local email services for external spamming or internal service disruption. Furthermore, enforcing strict access controls and multi-factor authentication on administrative accounts can significantly reduce the risk of credential compromise leading to this exploitation vector. Regular auditing of user activity logs should also be conducted to detect anomalous patterns in request frequency that might indicate attempted exploitation before a full denial of service occurs.