CVE-2010-5230
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedMultiple untrusted search path vulnerabilities in MicroStation 7.1 allow local users to gain privileges via a Trojan horse (1) mptools.dll, (2) baseman.dll, (3) wintab32.dll, or (4) wintab.dll file in the current working directory, as demonstrated by a directory that contains a .hln or .rdl file. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third party information.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceMicroStation 7.1 contains multiple untrusted search path (DLL hijacking) vulnerabilities where the application loads DLL files from the current working directory without validation. Attackers can place malicious versions of mptools.dll, baseman.dll, wintab32.dll, or wintab.dll in directories containing .hln or .rdl files, causing the application to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges when users open files from those directories.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 7.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify installed MicroStation versionCheck the program's version information through the Windows executable properties (right-click the MicroStation .exe file and select Properties > Details) or by launching MicroStation and checking Help > AboutAffected if The version is exactly 7.1 (this is the only affected version per the CVE)
-
Locate the vulnerable DLL filesSearch the MicroStation installation directory for mptools.dll, baseman.dll, wintab32.dll, and wintab.dll. These are the DLLs the application loads without validation from the current working directoryAffected if Any of these four DLLs (mptools.dll, baseman.dll, wintab32.dll, wintab.dll) exist in the MicroStation program directory, indicating the application attempts to load them
-
Verify DLL search path configurationInspect whether MicroStation uses safe DLL loading by checking if the application sets a secure DLL search order (e.g., via SetDllDirectory API) or uses full paths for DLL dependencies. This can be observed using process monitoring tools like Process Monitor during application startupAffected if The application loads DLLs from the current working directory without restricting the search path, which is the default vulnerable behavior
-
Check for trigger files in accessible directoriesSearch the system for .hln and .rld files (MicroStation reference and library files). Particularly check directories where these files are stored that may be writable by other usersAffected if .hln or .rld files exist in directories where untrusted users could place malicious DLLs, creating a hijacking opportunity
A user is affected if they are running MicroStation version 7.1 and the application loads any of the vulnerable DLLs (mptools.dll, baseman.dll, wintab32.dll, wintab.dll) from the current working directory when opening .hln or .rld files from potentially untrusted locations.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataImplement secure DLL search order by using SetDllDirectory or specifying full paths for all DLL dependencies, and ensure the application does not load DLLs from the current working directory. Alternatively, update to a patched version of MicroStation if available from the vendor.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2010-5230 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2010-5230 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data