CVE-2026-78404
Received Received - Intake

Local Privilege Escalation in IBM Db2 via db2pd Utility

Publication date: 2026-10-12

Last updated on: 2026-10-12

Assigner: IBM Corporation

Description
IBM Db2 11.5.0 through 11.5.9, and 12.1.0 through 12.1.5 is vulnerable to a local privilege escalation via the db2pd utility.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-10-12
Last Modified
2026-10-12
Generated
2026-10-13
AI Q&A
2026-10-12
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-78404
EUVD
EUVD-2026-97764

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 2 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
IBM Db2 11.5.0
IBM Db2 12.1.0

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-269 The product does not properly assign, modify, track, or check privileges for an actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.

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Executive Summary

IBM Db2 versions 11.5.0 to 11.5.9 and 12.1.0 to 12.1.5 have a local privilege escalation vulnerability in the db2pd utility. This allows a local attacker to gain elevated privileges on the system.

Detection Guidance

Detecting this vulnerability requires checking the installed IBM Db2 version and verifying if the db2pd utility is present. Use commands like 'db2level' to check the version and 'which db2pd' to locate the utility. Ensure the system is running affected versions (11.5.0-11.5.9 or 12.1.0-12.1.5) on Linux/Unix.

Impact Analysis

If you use IBM Db2 in your environment, an attacker with local access could exploit this to gain higher privileges, potentially allowing them to take control of the system or access sensitive data.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability does not directly impact compliance with GDPR or HIPAA as it is a local privilege escalation issue affecting IBM Db2 on Linux and Unix systems. Compliance risks would arise only if unauthorized access occurs due to exploitation, potentially leading to data breaches. However, the vulnerability itself is not a compliance violation but could facilitate non-compliance if exploited to access sensitive data.

Mitigation Strategies

Apply the latest IBM Db2 patches for versions 11.5.0-11.5.9 and 12.1.0-12.1.5 to address the db2pd utility privilege escalation vulnerability.

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