# CVE-2026-18499: IBM WebSphere Application Server Liberty is affected by a privilege escalation

> Attackers can escalate privileges in IBM WebSphere Application Server Liberty when using collectives, requiring a patch.

- **Severity:** High 8.1 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 12 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 13 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-fg2c-rf98-x93f

## What is CVE-2026-18499?

CVE-2026-18499 is a high-severity vulnerability in Ibm Websphere Application Server, published on 12 Aug 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

IBM WebSphere Application Server - Liberty 17.0.0.3 through 26.0.0.8 is vulnerable to a privilege escalation when using Liberty collectives.

Weakness: CWE-285 (Improper Authorization)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-18499?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Ibm Websphere Application Server.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-18499?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-18499 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-18499 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-18499 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Ibm Websphere Application Server

- [CVE-2015-1920](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-1920/): Code injection in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2013-0462](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-0462/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2011-1377](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-1377/): Security feature bypass in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2010-3186](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-3186/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2009-1899](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2009-1899/): Information disclosure in n/a (critical 10.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-18499 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-18499 is a high-severity vulnerability in Ibm Websphere Application Server, published on 12 Aug 2026. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-18499 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Ibm Websphere Application Server. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-18499/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-18499/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-18499
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-18499
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-18499

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-18499/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.