CVE-2016-3640
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 · uneditedThe Extended Application Services (aka XS or XS Engine) in SAP HANA DB 1.00.091.00.1418659308 allows local users to obtain sensitive password information via vectors related to passwords in Web Dispatcher trace files, aka SAP Security Note 2148905.
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 confidenceThe Extended Application Services (XS Engine) in SAP HANA DB stores sensitive password information in Web Dispatcher trace files. Local users with system access can read these trace files to obtain plaintext or recoverable password credentials, leading to credential disclosure.
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= 1.00.091.00.14186593CVSS 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
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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.
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Identify SAP HANA DB installationDetermine if SAP HANA DB software is installed on the system. Check for HANA-related processes or installed packages using system inventory tools.Affected if SAP HANA DB is not installed on the system
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Verify HANA DB versionQuery the installed SAP HANA DB version using the HANA database administration tools or by checking the installed software version. Compare against the affected version 1.00.091.00.14186593.Affected if The installed version equals exactly 1.00.091.00.14186593
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Locate Web Dispatcher trace filesSearch for Web Dispatcher trace or log files in the SAP HANA installation directory. These are typically found under the xs or webdispatcher subdirectories.Affected if Web Dispatcher trace files exist on the system
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Inspect trace file contents for credentialsExamine the contents of Web Dispatcher trace files for plaintext passwords, password patterns, or credential-related strings using text search utilities.Affected if Trace files contain password or credential data in plaintext or recoverable form
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Check file permissions on trace directoriesReview access permissions on directories containing Web Dispatcher trace files to determine if unprivileged local users can read these files.Affected if Local users without proper authorization can access the trace files
The environment is affected if SAP HANA DB version 1.00.091.00.14186593 is installed AND Web Dispatcher trace files containing password information are accessible to local users.
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 dataRestrict local user access to Web Dispatcher trace file directories and apply the patch from SAP Security Note 2148905. Consider rotating trace files that may contain historical password data.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-3640 — 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-2016-3640 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
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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