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Power Systems Firmware EUVDEUVD-2026-62692

| CVE-2026-16687 CRITICAL
Stack-based Buffer Overflow (CWE-121)
2026-08-19 ibm GHSA-p7wp-9r3f-5rpv
9.6
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: ibm
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Gain access to management VLAN
  2. Delivery
    Reach FSP ASMI web interface
  3. Exploit
    Send malformed oversized request
  4. Execution
    Overflow stack buffer in FSP handler
  5. Persist
    Hijack control flow, execute code on FSP
  6. Impact
    Full control of managed Power system

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Stack buffer bounds checking
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Execution

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

The attacker must have Layer-2/Layer-3 adjacency to the FSP's ASMI web interface (CVSS AV:A) - i.e., a presence on the management/service network segment that hosts ASMI - and the ASMI web service must be reachable and enabled. No authentication is required (PR:N) and no user interaction is needed (UI:N); the only trigger is a single malformed HTTP request to ASMI. The primary limiting factor is network placement: if ASMI/FSP is confined to an isolated out-of-band management VLAN, an external or general-corporate-network attacker cannot reach it, which is why this is adjacent rather than fully remote. Affected only on firmware levels FW1120.00, FW1110.00-FW1110.30, FW1060.00-FW1060.80, and FW950.00-FW950.H2.

Impact

This is a genuine high-priority issue rather than an inflated CVSS score: PR:N/UI:N/AC:L means no authentication, no user interaction, and low complexity, and the S:C scope change with C:H/I:H/A:H reflects that FSP compromise subverts the entire managed system. The single meaningful limiter is AV:A (Adjacent, not Network): exploitation requires access to the network segment carrying the FSP/ASMI management interface, which in well-segmented environments is an isolated out-of-band management VLAN - this is what holds the base score at 9.6 rather than a perfect 10.0. EPSS is not provided, and there is no KEV listing or POC signal, so real-world exploitation probability cannot be quantified from the input; the absence of EPSS/POC data means priority rests on the intrinsic severity and IBM's own patch release. No CVSS/description conflict exists - the description's 'network access' is consistent with the adjacent-network vector given ASMI is a management-plane service.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker who has gained a foothold on the out-of-band management VLAN (for example via a compromised jump host, a rogue device, or lateral movement into the service network) sends a single crafted, oversized request to the ASMI web interface. The malformed input overflows a stack buffer in the FSP request handler and hijacks execution, giving the attacker code execution on the service processor and thereby full control over the managed Power system without any credentials. No public POC is currently known, so this would require independent exploit development.

Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Why: CRITICAL severity.
Patch available 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Aug 19, 2026

Remote code execution in IBM Power Systems Firmware (FW1120.00, FW1110.00-FW1110.30, FW1060.00-FW1060.80, FW950.00-FW950.H2) lets an unauthenticated attacker with adjacent-network access to the ASMI web interface send a malformed request that overflows a stack buffer on the Flexible Service Processor (FSP), yielding arbitrary code execution and full control of the managed system. Because the FSP is the service processor beneath the OS, compromise crosses a scope boundary (CVSS S:C) and breaks confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the whole platform. No public exploit identified at time of analysis; IBM has released a fix and reported the issue itself.

RemediationAI

Apply IBM's firmware update per the vendor advisory at https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7283893, which lists the corrected service pack levels for each affected train (FW1120, FW1110, FW1060, FW950) - Patch available per vendor advisory; consult that page for the exact fixed build for your machine type before scheduling the concurrent or disruptive firmware apply. Until firmware can be updated, restrict reachability of the ASMI web interface and FSP to a dedicated, tightly controlled out-of-band management network and block it from general corporate and user VLANs; the exploit's AV:A vector means removing adjacent-network exposure is an effective compensating control. Additional hardening: place ASMI behind a management jump host with strict ACLs, disable or firewall the ASMI HTTP/HTTPS service from any untrusted segment, and monitor the management VLAN for anomalous requests - the trade-off is reduced remote manageability for administrators, so ensure legitimate management workflows retain a controlled path.

Affected VersionsENISA

Power Systems Firmware FW1060.00 ≤FW1060.80
Power Systems Firmware FW1120.00
Power Systems Firmware FW1110.00 ≤FW1110.30
Power Systems Firmware FW950.00 ≤FW950.H2

Affects your stack

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Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

The Advanced System Management Interface (ASMI) is the web-based management console served by the Flexible Service Processor (FSP), the out-of-band baseboard-style service processor that controls power, boot, error handling, and low-level configuration on IBM Power servers - analogous to a BMC/iDRAC/iLO but IBM-specific. CWE-121 (stack-based buffer overflow) indicates a fixed-size stack buffer in the ASMI request-handling code is written past its bounds when parsing a crafted/malformed request, corrupting the return address or adjacent stack data and enabling control-flow hijack on the FSP's firmware. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:ibm:power_systems_firmware:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* confirms the affected component is the platform firmware itself rather than a hosted OS or hypervisor, so the flaw sits at the deepest trust layer of the Power stack.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

Vendor (ibm) PRIMARY 9.6 CRITICAL
AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 9.6 CRITICAL

ASMI/FSP is reached over an adjacent management network (AV:A), needs no auth or interaction (PR:N/UI:N), and FSP code exec crosses into the managed OS (S:C) with full C/I/A loss.

3.1 AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:A/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H

Primary rating from Vendor (ibm).

CVSS VectorVendor: ibm

Attack Vector
Adjacent
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionCVE.org

IBM Power Systems Firmware FW1120.00, FW1110.00 through FW1110.30, FW1060.00 through FW1060.80, and FW950.00 through FW950.H2 is affected by a vulnerability in the ASMI web interface. An unauthenticated attacker with network access can send the FSP a malformed request, allowing arbitrary code execution, giving the attacker full control over the managed system, resulting in a confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

A critical remote code execution flaw in IBM Power Systems Firmware (versions FW950, FW1060, FW1110, FW1120) exposes affected infrastructure to complete seizure by unauthenticated network attackers, enabling unauthorized control of the underlying service processor and all hosted applications. Exploitation compromises confidentiality, integrity, and availability across the entire managed system, crossing normal administrative security boundaries. Leadership must prioritize immediate patching to restore platform integrity and prevent potential data loss, service outage, and operational control loss.

Business Impact: Severe
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 89% exploitable
Prevalence
Medium
IBM Power enterprise servers common in datacenters but not universally deployed
Data Quality
6 sources
Confidence: High

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity CRITICAL
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.2%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
CRITICAL severity
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Controlled
Automatable
No
Human Impact
Very High
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

48
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +48
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.

A stack-based buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a buffer located on the stack than it was allocated to hold.

Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.

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