CVE-2018-18251
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 · uneditedDeltek Vision 7.x before 7.6 permits the execution of any attacker supplied SQL statement through a custom RPC over HTTP protocol. The Vision system relies on the client binary to enforce security rules and integrity of SQL statements and other content being sent to the server. Client HTTP calls can be manipulated by one of several means to execute arbitrary SQL statements (similar to SQLi) or possibly have unspecified other impact via this custom protocol. To perform these attacks an authenticated session is first required. In some cases client calls are obfuscated by encryption, which can be bypassed due to hard-coded keys and an insecure key rotation protocol. Impacts may include remote code execution in some deployments; however, the vendor states that this cannot occur when the installation documentation is heeded.
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 confidenceDeltek Vision 7.x before 7.6 contains a vulnerability in its custom RPC over HTTP protocol where the client-side security enforcement can be bypassed by manipulating HTTP calls, allowing authenticated attackers to execute arbitrary SQL statements. The encryption protecting client communications uses hard-coded keys and an insecure key rotation protocol, enabling attackers to bypass obfuscation. This may lead to remote code execution in certain deployments, though the vendor states this is preventable by following installation documentation.
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>= 7.0, < 7.6CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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 Deltek Vision installation versionLocate the installed Deltek Vision version through the application's about screen, installation directory, or registry entries typically used for enterprise applicationsAffected if The installed version is 7.0 or higher but lower than 7.6
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Verify custom RPC over HTTP protocol is enabledCheck if the custom RPC over HTTP feature is configured and active in the Deltek Vision deployment, typically found in IIS configuration or Vision-specific service settingsAffected if The custom RPC over HTTP protocol is enabled and accessible over the network
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Inspect encryption configuration for hard-coded keysExamine the Deltek Vision configuration files related to client-server communication encryption, looking for embedded cryptographic keysAffected if Hard-coded encryption keys are present in configuration files or code
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Review key rotation protocol settingsInspect the communication security configuration to determine if insecure key rotation is in use, which may be indicated by static or reused session keysAffected if The key rotation protocol uses static or pre-determined keys rather than dynamic key exchange for each session
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Assess network exposure of RPC interfaceDetermine if the RPC over HTTP interface is exposed to untrusted networks or if proper network segmentation and authentication controls are in placeAffected if The interface is accessible without proper network-level access controls or from untrusted networks
A system is affected if it runs Deltek Vision version 7.0 through 7.5 with the custom RPC over HTTP protocol enabled and hard-coded encryption keys in use.
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 data7.6
Upgrade to Deltek Vision 7.6 or later and ensure all deployment configurations follow vendor installation documentation to prevent potential RCE. Consider reviewing access controls and monitoring for suspicious SQL activity as additional hardening.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-18251 — 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-2018-18251 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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- 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
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