CVE-2025-36038 | IBM WebSphere Application Server code execution

IBM WebSphere Application Server 8.5 and 9.0 could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the system with a specially crafted sequence of serialized objects.

Published: 2025-06-25 Last update: 2025-07-18 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2025-36038 is rated Moderate Risk (63.6/100): CVSS Critical severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 1.00%). Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2025-36038

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-04-21 0.37% 1.00% +0.63%
2 2026-03-11 0.27% 0.37% +0.10%
3 2026-01-29 — 0.27% —

Full EPSS history (10 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2025-36038

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
9.0 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.2 6.0 [email protected]
9.8 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 3.9 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2025-36038

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2025-36038

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
ibm websphere_application_server >= 8.5, < 8.5.5.28 cpe:2.3:a:ibm:websphere_application_server:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
ibm websphere_application_server >= 9.0, < 9.0.5.25 cpe:2.3:a:ibm:websphere_application_server:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2025-36038

cvelogic Threat Intelligence