IBM Guardium Data Protection 12.x releases expose a security flaw whereby an attacker can gain access to sensitive data by virtue of hard‑coded credentials embedded in the Windows GIM component. The weakness allows an adversary to retrieve those credentials and subsequently authenticate to the GIM service, compromising the confidentiality of the protected data. The description specifically mentions that a remote attacker could obtain sensitive information as a result of this issue. The vulnerability belongs to CWE‑798, identifying the misuse of fixed credentials as a root cause.

Affected are IBM Guardium Data Protection installations running the Windows GIM component for versions 12.0, 12.1, and 12.2 on Windows platforms. The product identifiers include cpe:2.3:a:ibm:guardium_data_protection:12.*:*, covering 12.0, 12.1, and 12.2 sub‑versions. These are the only disclosed affected releases.

The flaw carries a CVSS score of 5.9, indicating a moderate overall impact. No EPSS score is available, and the vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog. Based on the description, the likely attack vector is remote: an adversary can reach the GIM process over the network, read the hard‑coded credentials supplied at installation, and authenticate to or impersonate the service. The exploitation does not require local admin privileges on the target machine and targets a Windows component, which is readily exposed in many Guardium deployments. Consequently, the risk is that confidential data may leak through compromised GIM authentication. The absence of an EPSS score and KEV listing does not mitigate the medium severity of the CVSS score.