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Security Bulletin: Vulnerability exists in Watson Explorer (CVE-2021-4104)

Security Bulletin


Summary

Log4j is used by IBM Watson Explorer to log system events for diagnostics. This bulletin provides a remediation for the vulnerability, CVE-2021-4104 by upgrading Watson Explorer and thus addressing the exposure to the log4j vulnerability.

Vulnerability Details

CVEID:   CVE-2021-4104
DESCRIPTION:   Apache Log4j could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system, caused by the deserialization of untrusted data when the attacker has write access to the Log4j configuration. If the deployed application is configured to use JMSAppender, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability to execute arbitrary code on the system.
CVSS Base score: 8.1
CVSS Temporal Score: See: https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/215048 for the current score.
CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H)

Affected Products and Versions

Affected Product(s)Version(s)
IBM Watson Explorer Deep Analytics Edition Foundational Components
12.0.0.0,
12.0.1,
12.0.2.0 - 12.0.2.2,
12.0.3.0 - 12.0.3.7
IBM Watson Explorer Deep Analytics Edition Analytical Components
12.0.0.0,
12.0.1,
12.0.2.0 - 12.0.2.2,
12.0.3.0 - 12.0.3.7
IBM Watson Explorer Deep Analytics Edition oneWEX
12.0.0.0, 12.0.0.1
12.0.1,
12.0.2.0 - 12.0.2.2,
12.0.3.0 - 12.0.3.7
IBM Watson Explorer
Foundational Components		11.0.0.0 - 11.0.0.3,
11.0.1,
11.0.2.0 -
11.0.2.11
IBM Watson Explorer Analytical Components11.0.0.0 - 11.0.0.3,
11.0.1,
11.0.2.0 - 
11.0.2.11
IBM Watson Explorer Content Analytics Studio12.0.0, 12.0.1, 12.0.2, 12.0.3
IBM Watson Explorer Content Analytics Studio11.0.0.0 - 11.0.0.3,
11.0.1, 11.0.2.0 - 11.0.2.2

Remediation/Fixes

Affected ProductAffected VersionsHow to acquire and apply the fix
IBM Watson Explorer DAE
Foundational Components
12.0.0.0,
12.0.1,
12.0.2.0 - 12.0.2.2, 12.0.3.0 - 12.0.3.7
 Upgrade to Version 12.0.3.8. 

See Watson Explorer Version 12.0.3.8 Foundational Components for download information and instructions.

IBM Watson Explorer Deep Analytics Edition Analytical Components12.0.0.0, 12.0.1, 12.0.2.0 - 12.0.2.2, 12.0.3.0 - 12.0.3.7

Upgrade to Version 12.0.3.8.

See Watson Explorer Version 12.0.3.8 Analytical Components for download information and instructions.

IBM Watson Explorer Deep Analytics Edition oneWEX12.0.0.0, 12.0.0.1, 12.0.1, 12.0.2.0 - 12.0.2.2, 12.0.3.0 - 12.0.3.7

Upgrade to Version 12.0.3.8.

See Watson Explorer Version 12.0.3.8 oneWEX for download information and instructions.

IBM Watson Explorer
Foundational Components		11.0.0.0 - 11.0.0.3,
11.0.1,
11.0.2.0 -
11.0.2.11

Upgrade to Version 11.0.2.12. 

See Watson Explorer Version 11.0.2.12 Foundational Components for download information and instructions.

IBM Watson Explorer Analytical Components11.0.0.0 - 11.0.0.3,
11.0.1,
11.0.2.0 - 
11.0.2.11

Upgrade to Version 11.0.2.12.

See Watson Explorer Version 11.0.2.12 Analytical Components for download information and instructions.

IBM Watson Explorer Content Analytics Studio12.0.0, 12.0.1, 12.0.2, 12.0.3
  1. If you have not already installed, install Version 12.0.3. For information about Version 12.0.3, and links to the software and release notes, see the download document.
  2. Download the interim fix from Fix Central: 12.0.3.0-WS-WatsonExplorer-DAEAnalytical-CAStudio-IF001.
  3. To apply the fix, follow the steps below.
    1. Delete %CA_STUDIO_INSTALL_DIR%\plugins\com.hp.hpl.jena_2.11.0 folder
    2. Extract the interim fix zip file to the %CA_STUDIO_INSTALL_DIR%\plugins folder
    3. Run command %CA_STUDIO_INSTALL_DIR%\studio.exe -clean in Command Prompt
IBM Watson Explorer Content Analytics Studio11.0.0.0 - 11.0.0.3,
11.0.1, 11.0.2.0 - 11.0.2.2
  1. If you have not already installed, install Version 11.0.2.2.
  2. Download the interim fix from Fix Central: 11.0.2.2-WS-WatsonExplorer-AEAnalytical-CAStudio-IF001.
  3. To apply the fix, follow the steps below.
    1. Delete %CA_STUDIO_INSTALL_DIR%\plugins\com.hp.hpl.jena_2.11.0 folder
    2. Extract the interim fix zip file to the %CA_STUDIO_INSTALL_DIR%\plugins folder
    3. Run command %CA_STUDIO_INSTALL_DIR%\studio.exe -clean in Command Prompt

Workarounds and Mitigations

None

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References

Complete CVSS v3 Guide
On-line Calculator v3

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Related Information

IBM Secure Engineering Web Portal
IBM Product Security Incident Response Blog

Change History

17 Dec 2021: Initial Publication

*The CVSS Environment Score is customer environment specific and will ultimately impact the Overall CVSS Score. Customers can evaluate the impact of this vulnerability in their environments by accessing the links in the Reference section of this Security Bulletin.

Disclaimer

Review the IBM security bulletin disclaimer and definitions regarding your responsibilities for assessing potential impact of security vulnerabilities to your environment.

Document Location

Worldwide

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Document Information

Modified date:
17 December 2021

UID

ibm16527728

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