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IBM DataStage EUVDEUVD-2026-77789

| CVE-2026-16673 HIGH
OS Command Injection (CWE-78)
2026-09-14 ibm GHSA-x8gr-p84p-278m
8.8
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
    Obtain authenticated DataStage account
  2. Delivery
    Craft job with malicious PxPeek name property
  3. Exploit
    Submit job to DataStage engine
  4. Execution
    Shell metacharacters passed unsanitized
  5. Persist
    OS command executes as DataStage service account
  6. Impact
    Steal data and pivot on engine host

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization OS command sanitization, avoid shell exec
MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques across 1 tactic: Execution

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

Impact

The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, 8.8) describes a low-complexity, network-reachable attack requiring only low privileges and no user interaction, with total impact to the vulnerable system but no scope change - so the blast radius is the DataStage engine host and its service account, not the entire cluster. Two independent signals temper the score: CISA's SSVC decision records Exploitation: none and Automatable: no, meaning no active exploitation was observed and the attack requires human-crafted, non-scriptable job manipulation rather than mass scanning. No PoC or public exploit was identified, no KEV listing exists, and no EPSS score was provided in the input - that missing EPSS datapoint is a real gap, since a network-vector authenticated RCE in enterprise ETL tooling often attracts elevated EPSS once proof-of-concept details surface. In short, this is a genuine high-severity authenticated RCE that warrants scheduled emergency patching, but it is not a wormable, unauthenticated, internet-facing exposure; the residual risk is driven almost entirely by who can obtain a DataStage login.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker holding a low-privileged, authenticated DataStage account (for example a developer or operator role) crafts or modifies a job so that the PxPeek name property contains shell metacharacters plus an OS command, then submits the job so it executes on the DataStage engine. Because the property is passed to the operating system without neutralization, the injected command runs with the privileges of the DataStage service account, giving the attacker command execution, data access, and a foothold on the engine host. No public exploit code was identified, and the attack is not considered automatable (SSVC), so it requires deliberate, knowledgeable job manipulation rather than a one-shot script.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.4% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Sep 15, 2026

IBM DataStage on Cloud Pak for Data 5.4.0.0 fails to neutralize special characters in the PxPeek name property, allowing an authenticated remote user to inject and execute arbitrary operating-system commands on the DataStage engine. The flaw carries a CVSS base score of 8.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N), reflecting full loss of confidentiality, integrity, and availability for a low-privileged authenticated attacker. A vendor patch is available from IBM, no public exploit code or CISA KEV entry was identified at time of analysis, and CISA's SSVC assessment rates the issue as not automatable with no observed exploitation, making it a patch-promptly rather than drop-everything priority.

RemediationAI

Apply the IBM-supplied fix for DataStage on Cloud Pak for Data 5.4.0.0 as documented in IBM's advisory at https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7286562 - this is a vendor-issued patch and is the primary and preferred remediation; confirm the exact fixed build/service level in that advisory before declaring closure, since the input does not state a precise fix version string. If immediate patching is not feasible, reduce exposure by treating DataStage project and job-design privileges as sensitive: restrict who can create or modify jobs and job properties that reference PxPeek, and validate that no unnecessary users hold developer/designer roles that could set the vulnerable property - the trade-off is reduced developer flexibility and additional role-management overhead. Additional compensating controls include limiting network reachability to DataStage engine and job-submission endpoints to trusted administration networks, running DataStage services under a least-privileged OS account with no interactive login and tightly scoped filesystem rights (this limits post-exploitation command impact but does not prevent command execution), and alerting on unexpected child processes or shell invocations spawned by the DataStage engine user, which is detection rather than prevention and can generate noise in environments with legitimate pre/post-job shell scripts.

Affected VersionsENISA

DataStage on Cloud Pak for Data 5.4.0.0

Affected Packages

euvd datastage_on_cloud_pak_for_data no fix

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in euvd

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

Technical ContextAI · show details

IBM DataStage is the ETL/data-integration component of Cloud Pak for Data, and it uses the PxPeek mechanism (part of the parallel-extender/PX runtime) to inspect job properties and metadata at execution time. The vulnerability is an OS command injection (improper neutralization of special characters, CWE-78 class) in the handling of the PxPeek name property: when a job property value is passed through to a shell or command-evaluation context without sanitization, characters such as shell metacharacters are interpreted by the underlying operating system rather than treated as literal data. The NVD CPE identifier cpe:2.3:a:ibm:datastage_on_cloud_pak_for_data:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* confirms the affected artifact is the DataStage component of Cloud Pak for Data (per EUVD, version 5.4.0.0 specifically) rather than the Cloud Pak platform as a whole. No CWE was supplied in the input metadata, but the description maps unambiguously to command injection.

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Severity by source

Vendor (ibm) PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 8.8 HIGH

Exploitation reaches the job/engine interface over the network with low privileges and no user interaction, requiring intentional property crafting rather than an inherent complexity barrier.

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

Primary rating from Vendor (ibm).

CVSS VectorVendor: ibm

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionCVE.org

IBM DataStage on Cloud Pak for Data 5.4.0.0 IBM DataStage could allow a remote authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary OS commands due to improper neutralization of special characters in the PxPeek name property.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.4%
Top 67% exploitable
Prevalence
Medium
Enterprise data-integration platform, common in large data estates but not ubiquitous
Data Quality
5 sources
Confidence: Medium

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 HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.4%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
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· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

44
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

OS command injection occurs when an application passes unsanitized user input directly into system shell commands.

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