CVE-2020-25238
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 PCS neo (Administration Console) (All versions < V3.1), TIA Portal (V15, V15.1 and V16). Manipulating certain files in specific folders could allow a local attacker to execute code with SYSTEM privileges. The security vulnerability could be exploited by an attacker with a valid account and limited access rights on the system.
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 a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Siemens TIA Portal (V15, V15.1, V16) and PCS neo Administration Console (all versions < V3.1). An attacker with a valid low-privileged user account can manipulate certain files in specific folders to achieve arbitrary code execution with SYSTEM privileges.
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< 3.1= 15= 15.1= 16CVSS 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
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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 installed TIA Portal versionCheck the Windows Programs and Features list or look for Siemens TIA Portal entries in the installation directory for version numbers (V15, V15.1, or V16)Affected if TIA Portal versions 15, 15.1, or 16 are installed
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Identify installed PCS neo Administration Console versionCheck Windows Programs and Features for Siemens PCS neo Administration Console and note the installed versionAffected if PCS neo Administration Console version is earlier than V3.1 or the version cannot be confirmed as V3.1 or later
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Verify low-privileged user accounts existReview local user accounts or domain users who have access to the system with standard user privileges (not administrators)Affected if Low-privileged user accounts with file system access exist on the affected system
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Confirm presence of vulnerable folder permissionsInspect file system permissions on TIA Portal or PCS neo installation directories where user-writable folders exist that could be manipulatedAffected if Low-privileged users have write permissions to critical application folders that should be restricted to administrators only
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Check for recent privilege escalation indicatorsReview Windows event logs for unexpected processes spawning under the SYSTEM account, particularly from paths associated with TIA Portal or PCS neo installationsAffected if Evidence exists of code execution under SYSTEM privileges originating from user-accessible application paths
You are affected if either Siemens TIA Portal V15, V15.1, or V16 OR PCS neo Administration Console versions before V3.1 are installed AND low-privileged users have write access to application directories.
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 data3.1
Apply vendor updates: upgrade PCS neo Administration Console to V3.1 or later; apply available patches for affected TIA Portal versions. Until patched, restrict file system permissions on vulnerable folders and minimize the number of users with local system access.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-25238 — 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-2020-25238 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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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.
- 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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