Description

IBM i 7.6, 7.5, 7.4, and 7.3 could allow a remote authenticated attacker to obtain sensitive information and compromise system integrity due to an XML injection flaw.

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "8.1",
  "pubDate": "2026-08-12T17:17:24.993Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-08-12T17:17:24.993Z",
  "executiveSummary": "This security assessment analyzes an XML injection vulnerability affecting IBM i versions 7.6, 7.5, 7.4, and 7.3. The flaw allows a remote authenticated attacker to compromise system integrity and obtain sensitive information.\nThe vulnerability stems from improper input validation and sanitization within XML parsing routines utilized by the affected IBM i operating system components. When an application processes user-supplied data without adequately neutralizing special XML control characters or entity references, an attacker can inject malicious XML content into data streams.\nThe primary impact of successful exploitation includes unauthorized data disclosure and the potential degradation of system integrity. Because the flaw facilitates the extraction of sensitive information, an attacker could leverage these insights to plan subsequent attacks or escalate privileges further within the environment.\nExploitation of this vulnerability requires the attacker to possess valid authentication credentials to the target system, indicating a threat profile typically associated with authenticated insiders or compromised user accounts. Network exposure varies depending on the specific vulnerable service interface, but remote access capabilities are presumed.\nOrganizations operating the specified IBM i versions face moderate to high risk implications due to potential data exposure and unauthorized modification risks. Remediation requires applying official vendor patches or updates as soon as they become available.",
  "technicalDetails": "The vulnerability is classified as an XML injection flaw residing within the XML parsing and data handling architecture of IBM i 7.6, 7.5, 7.4, and 7.3. The root cause originates from the failure of the underlying application components to properly sanitize and validate input parameters before incorporating them into structured XML documents or queries.\nWhen external or untrusted input is parsed by vulnerable routines without strict schema validation or proper escaping of metacharacters such as angle brackets (<, >), ampersands (&), and quotes (\", '), the XML parser misinterprets the injected strings as structural XML elements rather than literal data. This misinterpretation allows the manipulation of the document object model or execution contexts depending on how the parser handles external entities or DTDs.\nThe attack flow typically proceeds in a step-by-step manner. First, the remote authenticated attacker identifies an input vector that interfaces with the XML processing mechanism. Second, the attacker crafts a specialized payload containing malicious XML tags, attributes, or external entity references designed to alter the logical structure of the processed document. Third, the attacker transmits the payload to the vulnerable endpoint over the network using the established protocol required by the targeted service.\nUpon receipt, the vulnerable component processes the untrusted input without adequate neutralization, causing the parser to evaluate the injected structures. This behavior can lead to the disclosure of sensitive internal files if entity expansion is permitted, or unauthorized modifications to system data structures, thereby compromising system integrity.\nAuthentication requirements dictate that the attacker must have valid credentials to interact with the vulnerable interface, limiting exploitation to authenticated users. Privilege requirements depend on the specific context of the vulnerable component, but successful exploitation yields the capability to read unauthorized information and manipulate data streams within the scope of the affected application or service."
}