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IBM Business Automation Workflow EUVDEUVD-2026-78870

| CVE-2026-12742 MEDIUM
Missing Authorization (CWE-862)
2026-09-15 ibm GHSA-4qhm-cjfg-jjv8
5.4
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
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Attack ChainAIDerived

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

  1. Recon
    Authenticate with low-privileged account
  2. Delivery
    Reach workflow web interface over network
  3. Exploit
    Open restricted import function
  4. Install
    Missing authorization check is bypassed
  5. C2
    Submit crafted import payload
  6. Execute
    Inject or alter workflow content
  7. Impact
    Limited data exposure and configuration tampering

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V8 - Authorization Authorization checks on every request
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Privilege Escalation

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

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires a valid authenticated account on the IBM Business Automation Workflow instance (CVSS PR:L) and network reachability to the web interface that exposes the affected import functionality - per the vendor description, the trigger is the restricted import action itself, so the attacker must be able to invoke that import operation. What limits the impact is that the flaw grants unauthorized access to import actions rather than full administrative control: confidentiality and integrity impact are both rated Low and there is no availability impact, so an attacker cannot directly destroy the platform or read the whole datastore. Successful exploitation depends on the environment actually exposing import endpoints to non-administrative users; deployments where role assignments already confine import rights to trusted administrators, or where the interface is not reachable from the attacker's network position, reduce practical exposure. Authentication requirements are confirmed as authenticated-only by the PR:L metric.

Impact

The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N) describes a straightforward network-reachable flaw with no user interaction and no special complexity, but it requires a valid authenticated account (PR:L) and produces only limited confidentiality and integrity impact with no availability loss - that combination is what keeps the base score at 5.4 rather than critical. There is no CISA KEV listing and no public proof-of-concept reported, so this should be read as a realistic post-authentication authorization weakness rather than an imminent mass-exploitation event; nonetheless, even a mid-sized municipal IT team in leszno running Business Automation Workflow should treat it as urgent once a patch is staged, because the barrier to entry is simply one valid low-privileged credential. EPSS data was not supplied, so no probabilistic exploitation estimate can be layered on top of the CVSS score, and the scope is unchanged (S:U), meaning impact is confined to the affected workflow instance rather than cascading into adjacent systems.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker who holds any valid low-privileged Business Automation Workflow account authenticates normally to the web interface and navigates to an import function that the application should have blocked for their role. Because no authorization check is enforced on that action, the import proceeds, allowing the attacker to inject or overwrite workflow content and read limited data that their role should not expose. The attack requires network reachability to the BAW interface and a working credential, but no user interaction and no elevated privileges.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
Patch available 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Sep 15, 2026

IBM Business Automation Workflow (both containerized and traditional deployments) fails to enforce authorization checks on certain import operations, letting an authenticated user invoke restricted import actions they should not be permitted to perform. Successful abuse yields limited confidentiality and integrity impact (CVSS 5.4, AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N) rather than full system compromise. No public exploit code has been identified and the flaw is not listed in CISA KEV, but IBM has published a vendor patch, so unpatched deployments remain exposed to any user holding a valid low-privileged account.

RemediationAI

Apply the vendor-released patch referenced by IBM at https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7285930; because the advisory does not enumerate an exact fix version in the data available here, confirm the precise fix-pack or container image tag for your Business Automation Workflow release directly on that page before upgrading. Where an immediate upgrade is not possible, reduce exposure by restricting network access to the import and deployment endpoints to trusted administrative networks, disabling or removing the import capability from low-privileged roles until the fix is applied, and auditing account provisioning so that only operators who genuinely require import rights retain them. Each of these is a compensating control, not a substitute for the patch: network restriction breaks legitimate remote administrative workflows, and removing import rights from roles will block normal content deployment until permissions are restored after patching. Monitor workflow and configuration logs for unexpected import operations performed by non-administrative accounts as an interim detection measure.

Affected VersionsENISA

Business Automation Workflow containers and traditional 24.0.1 ≤24.0.1 Interim Fix 008
Business Automation Workflow containers and traditional 24.0.0 ≤24.0.0 Interim Fix 009
Business Automation Workflow containers and traditional 25.0.0 ≤25.0.0 Interim Fix 005
Business Automation Workflow containers and traditional 26.0.0 ≤26.0.0 Interim Fix 001

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 root cause is CWE-862 (Missing Authorization): the application exposes import functionality through its web interface but does not verify that the calling principal holds the role or permission required for that operation. IBM Business Automation Workflow is a Java-based business process management and workflow automation suite available both as a containerized (Cloud Pak / container images) distribution and as a traditional on-premises installation, and it typically fronts workflow definitions, process applications, and configuration artifacts that can be imported or deployed through administrative endpoints. Because the missing check sits on the authorization layer rather than the authentication layer, any user who can authenticate and reach the import endpoint can drive functionality that the intended role model reserves for privileged operators, allowing unauthorized ingestion or alteration of workflow content.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

Vendor (ibm) PRIMARY MEDIUM
NVD 5.4 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N
vuln.today AI 5.4 MEDIUM

Network-reachable web import endpoint with no user interaction or complexity, but a valid low-privileged account is required, matching PR:L and Low C/I with no availability impact.

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

Primary rating from Vendor (ibm).

CVSS VectorNVD

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

DescriptionNVD

IBM Business Automation Workflow containers and traditional could allow an authenticated attacker to trigger restricted import actions due to missing authorization controls.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 86% exploitable
Prevalence
Medium
Enterprise BPM suite common in large IBM-centric IT estates
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 MEDIUM
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.2%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)
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
Partial

Priority Score

27
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +27
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Authentication bypass attacks exploit flaws in the verification mechanisms that control access to systems and applications.

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