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Patient Information Center IxApplication · Philips

CVE-2020-16228

MEDIUM · 6.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-09-11
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
66/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click

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 · unedited
In Patient Information Center iX (PICiX) Versions C.02 and C.03, PerformanceBridge Focal Point Version A.01, IntelliVue patient monitors MX100, MX400-MX550, MX750, MX850, and IntelliVue X3 Versions N and prior, the software does not check or incorrectly checks the revocation status of a certificate, which may cause it to use a compromised certificate.

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 · moderate confidence

Multiple Philips medical monitoring devices fail to properly validate certificate revocation status, allowing potentially compromised or revoked certificates to be trusted. This certificate validation weakness could enable man-in-the-middle attacks or trust of fraudulent identities during encrypted communications.

MitigationImplement proper certificate revocation checking using CRL (Certificate Revocation List) and/or OCSP (Online Certificate Status Protocol) validation. Apply vendor-provided security patches for affected device versions.

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
Patient Information Center IxApplication
Affected:= b.02= c.02= c.03
Performancebridge Focal PointApplication
Affected:= a.01
Intellivue Mp2 Mp90 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Intellivue Mx100 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Intellivue Mx400 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Intellivue Mx850 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Intellivue X2 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions
Intellivue X3 FirmwareOperating system
Affected:all versions

CVSS 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
Adjacent
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify device model and firmware version
    Locate the product label or system information screen on the Philips medical device to confirm the exact model (e.g., Patient Information Center Ix, Intellivue Mp90, Intellivue Mx100) and note the installed firmware or software version number
    Affected if The device model matches one listed in affected products AND the version falls within the affected ranges (b.02, c.02, c.03 for PIC Ix; a.01 for Performancebridge Focal Point; or 'all versions' for Intellivue models)
  2. Confirm network communication is enabled
    Check device network settings or documentation to determine if the device is configured to communicate over network connections that use TLS/SSL encryption (such as connecting to hospital networks, other medical devices, or remote servers)
    Affected if The device uses any network communication where certificates are exchanged for authentication or encryption
  3. Inspect certificate revocation validation configuration
    Access the device security settings, certificate management interface, or network configuration panel. Look for options related to certificate validation, CRL (Certificate Revocation List) checking, or OCSP (Online Certificate Status Protocol) validation. Determine whether these are enabled, disabled, or not configurable
    Affected if Certificate revocation checking (CRL/OCSP) is disabled, not implemented, or not configurable on the device
  4. Check for vendor security documentation
    Review any Philips security bulletins, release notes, or firmware change logs for the specific device model to confirm whether the certificate validation fix has been applied
    Affected if The installed version does not include the security fix for improper certificate revocation validation, or no fix has been applied

A user is affected if their device model and version match the affected products list and the device uses network communications without proper certificate revocation validation enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Implement proper certificate revocation checking using CRL (Certificate Revocation List) and/or OCSP (Online Certificate Status Protocol) validation. Apply vendor-provided security patches for affected device versions.

Fix this in Patient Information Center Ix Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation12.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing16.0 h
  • Review / QA8.0 h
44.0 hours of engineering $7,680
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-16228 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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