CVE-2016-5645
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 · uneditedRockwell Automation MicroLogix 1400 PLC 1766-L32BWA, 1766-L32AWA, 1766-L32BXB, 1766-L32BWAA, 1766-L32AWAA, and 1766-L32BXBA devices have a hardcoded SNMP community, which makes it easier for remote attackers to load arbitrary firmware updates by leveraging knowledge of this community.
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 Rockwell Automation MicroLogix 1400 PLC models (1766-L32BWA, 1766-L32AWA, 1766-L32BXB, 1766-L32BWAA, 1766-L32AWAA, and 1766-L32BXBA) contain a hardcoded SNMP community string embedded in the firmware. This static credential allows remote attackers who discover the community string to authenticate to the device's SNMP service and load arbitrary firmware updates, effectively allowing complete device compromise.
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 dataall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsCVSS 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L
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 the PLC modelAccess the PLC through RSLogix/Rockwell software or physical label and confirm the exact model number matches 1766-L32BWA, 1766-L32AWA, 1766-L32BXB, 1766-L32BWAA, 1766-L32AWAA, or 1766-L32BXBAAffected if Device model is one of the six listed models (all versions are affected)
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Verify SNMP service statusCheck if SNMP is enabled on the device via the PLC configuration or by scanning UDP port 161 on the device IP addressAffected if SNMP is enabled and responding on the device
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Assess network exposure of SNMP portScan the network to determine if UDP port 161 is accessible from untrusted network segments or the internetAffected if SNMP port 161 is exposed to untrusted networks or directly accessible from outside the local control system network
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Test for hardcoded SNMP community stringIf SNMP is enabled and accessible, attempt an SNMP query using known default or publicly disclosed community strings for this device (the hardcoded string is embedded in firmware)Affected if SNMP authentication succeeds with a hardcoded community string, indicating the vulnerability is exploitable
If the device is a MicroLogix 1400 model from the affected list and SNMP is enabled and accessible, the hardcoded community string vulnerability is present and exploitable.
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 dataContact Rockwell Automation for a firmware update that removes or allows changing the hardcoded SNMP community string. In the interim, isolate affected devices on a restricted network segment with SNMP access blocked from untrusted networks.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing10.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-5645 — 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-2016-5645 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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