CVE-2021-29774
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2021-29774 is a privilege escalation vulnerability in IBM Jazz Team Server products that allows authenticated users to gain elevated privileges under certain configurations. This affects organizations using IBM Jazz Team Server with vulnerable configurations, potentially allowing attackers to bypass intended access controls.
💻 Affected Systems
- IBM Jazz Team Server
- IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management
- IBM Engineering Workflow Management
- IBM Engineering Test Management
- IBM Rational DOORS Next
- IBM Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager
📦 What is this software?
Engineering Lifecycle Optimization by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Engineering Lifecycle Optimization →
Engineering Lifecycle Optimization by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Engineering Lifecycle Optimization →
Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management →
Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management →
Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager →
Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager →
Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager →
Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager by Ibm
View all CVEs affecting Rational Engineering Lifecycle Manager →
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
An authenticated attacker could gain administrative privileges, potentially compromising the entire Jazz Team Server environment, accessing sensitive data, modifying configurations, or disrupting operations.
Likely Case
An authenticated user with limited privileges could elevate their access level to perform unauthorized actions within the Jazz Team Server environment.
If Mitigated
With proper access controls and monitoring, impact would be limited to unauthorized privilege elevation within the authenticated user's scope.
🎯 Exploit Status
Requires authenticated access and specific vulnerable configurations. No public exploit code available.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Apply interim fix or upgrade to fixed versions as specified in IBM advisories
Vendor Advisory: https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/6508583
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Review IBM advisory for specific affected versions. 2. Apply interim fix or upgrade to fixed version. 3. Restart Jazz Team Server services. 4. Verify the fix is applied.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Restrict User Privileges
allLimit user privileges to minimum required levels to reduce impact if exploited
Review and Harden Configurations
allAudit Jazz Team Server configurations and remove unnecessary elevated privilege assignments
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict access controls and principle of least privilege
- Monitor for unusual privilege escalation attempts in audit logs
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Jazz Team Server version against IBM advisory and review configuration for privilege settingsCheck Version:
Check Jazz Team Server administration console or version files in installation directoryVerify Fix Applied:
Verify Jazz Team Server version is updated to fixed version and test privilege escalation attempts📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual privilege escalation events
- Multiple failed authentication attempts followed by successful privilege changes
- Administrative actions from non-admin accounts
Network Indicators:
- Unusual authentication patterns to Jazz Team Server
- Multiple privilege-related API calls from single user
SIEM Query:
source="jazz_server" AND (event_type="privilege_escalation" OR user_role_change="true")