CVE-2026-16938 Power System Missing Authorization

Medium 6.9 Published 19 Aug 2026 Updated 20 Aug 2026

Authenticated administrators can disable system components via FSP, causing persistent denial of service requiring manual intervention.

Exploited in the wild: Not known
Login needed: An administrator
Attackable: Local or same network only
Victim action needed: Not needed
Fix: None listed

What is CVE-2026-16938?

CVE-2026-16938 is a medium-severity missing authorization vulnerability in IBM Power Systems Firmware, published on 19 Aug 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

Official description

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 access controls over privileged system configuration operations on the FSP. An attacker with authenticated administrator-level access to the FSP can place the managed system into a non-production operational mode, allowing certain system components to be disabled. This condition persists across FSP resets and requires explicit operator intervention — clearing the affected configuration — to restore normal operation. Successful exploitation results in an availability impact to the managed system.

Weakness: CWE-862

Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-16938?

It affects 9 products.

Products include Ibm Power System E1080 \(9080-Hex\) Firmware, Ibm Power System E1180 \(9080-Heu\) Firmware, Ibm Power System E950 \(9040-Mr9\) Firmware, Ibm Power System E980 \(9080-M9s\) Firmware, Ibm Power System H922 \(9223-22s\) Firmware, Ibm Power System H924 \(9223-42s\) Firmware and 3 more.

How do I fix CVE-2026-16938?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-16938 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

Upgrade, and check permissions on every request on the server, not only in the interface. More about Missing authorization.

Is CVE-2026-16938 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-16938 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Sources

Also known as GHSA-v4hv-27x8-h9vq.