CVE-2020-14478
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 local, authenticated attacker could use an XML External Entity (XXE) attack to exploit weakly configured XML files to access local or remote content. A successful exploit could potentially cause a denial-of-service condition and allow the attacker to arbitrarily read any local file via system-level services.
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 confidenceThis is an XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability in a product with weakly configured XML parsing. A local, authenticated attacker can exploit this by submitting specially crafted XML that references external entities, allowing arbitrary local file reads and potential denial-of-service through recursive entity expansion.
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<= 6.11.00CVSS 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
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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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Confirm FactoryTalk Services Platform installationLocate the FactoryTalk Services Platform installation directory or check installed programs list on the Windows system. Look for 'FactoryTalk Services Platform' in Programs and Features or check the typical installation path (C:\Program Files\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Services Platform or similar).Affected if FactoryTalk Services Platform is installed on the system
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Identify installed versionOpen the Windows Registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Services Platform\ or check the version information in the program's executable properties (right-click on the main DLL or exe, select Properties, view Version tab).Affected if The installed version is 6.11.00 or any version lower than 6.11.00
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Check XML parser external entity configurationLocate configuration files related to XML processing within the FactoryTalk installation directory. Look for XML parser settings in config files (XML.config, web.config for web interfaces, or application-specific XML settings). Search for entries containing 'externalEntity', 'dtd', 'resolveExternal', or 'entityResolver' settings.Affected if XML parser is configured to allow external entity processing (externalEntityResolution or similar setting is enabled or not explicitly disabled)
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Verify XXE protection mechanismsInspect application or web configuration files for XML security settings. Check if DTD (Document Type Definition) processing is disabled and whether external entity declarations are explicitly rejected. Look for configurations that set 'prohibitDTD' or 'processInline' flags.Affected if No XXE protection is configured and DTD/external entity processing is permitted
You are affected if FactoryTalk Services Platform version 6.11.00 or lower is installed AND the XML parser is configured to allow external entity processing without explicit protection against XXE.
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 dataDisable XML external entity processing in the XML parser configuration and implement input validation to reject DTDs and external entity declarations.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation5.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-14478 — 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-2020-14478 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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