CVE-2018-11456
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 · uneditedA vulnerability has been identified in Automation License Manager 5 (All versions < 5.3.4.4). An attacker with network access to the device could send specially crafted network packets to determine whether or not a network port on another remote system is accessible or not. This allows the attacker to do basic network scanning using the victims machine. Successful exploitation requires a network connection to the affected device. The attacker does not need privileges, no user interaction is required. The impact is limited to determining whether or not a port on a target system is accessible by the affected device.
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 confidenceAutomation License Manager 5 versions before 5.3.4.4 contains a network port scanning vulnerability. An unauthenticated attacker with network access can send specially crafted packets to determine if arbitrary ports on remote systems are accessible, effectively using the vulnerable device as a proxy for port scanning.
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< 5.3.4.4CVSS 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
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/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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Verify Automation License Manager is installedCheck for the presence of Siemens Automation License Manager on the system. Look in typical installation directories such as C:\Program Files\Siemens\Automation License Manager or check the Windows Programs and Features list.Affected if The software is present on the system
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Determine the installed versionOpen the Automation License Manager application and navigate to Help > About, or right-click the application in the Windows Start menu and select Properties to view version information.Affected if The version displayed is earlier than 5.3.4.4
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Identify network service exposureCheck if the Automation License Manager service is listening on network ports. Use netstat -an | findstr "port_number" or review firewall rules to determine if the service is accessible from network positions.Affected if The service port is open to network connections from untrusted sources
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Confirm network accessibilityAttempt to access the Automation License Manager service from a remote system using telnet or nc to the known service port (typically 4410 or 4411) to verify it accepts connections.Affected if Remote unauthenticated connections can be established to the service
The environment is affected if Automation License Manager version is below 5.3.4.4 and the service is accessible over the network, allowing an attacker to use it as a proxy for port scanning.
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 data5.3.4.4
Upgrade Automation License Manager to version 5.3.4.4 or later. Additionally, implement network segmentation to restrict the device's ability to initiate connections to arbitrary internal systems.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-11456 — 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-2018-11456 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
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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