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Simatic Automatic ToolApplication · Siemens

CVE-2020-7580

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-06-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.6 / 7.4 or later.
See remediation →
69/100
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
A vulnerability has been identified in SIMATIC Automation Tool (All versions < V4 SP2), SIMATIC NET PC Software V14 (All versions < V14 SP1 Update 14), SIMATIC NET PC Software V15 (All versions), SIMATIC NET PC Software V16 (All versions < V16 Upd3), SIMATIC PCS neo (All versions < V3.0 SP1), SIMATIC ProSave (All versions < V17), SIMATIC S7-1500 Software Controller (All versions < V21.8), SIMATIC STEP 7 (TIA Portal) V13 (All versions < V13 SP2 Update 4), SIMATIC STEP 7 (TIA Portal) V14 (All versions < V14 SP1 Update 10), SIMATIC STEP 7 (TIA Portal) V15 (All versions < V15.1 Update 5), SIMATIC STEP 7 (TIA Portal) V16 (All versions < V16 Update 2), SIMATIC STEP 7 V5 (All versions < V5.6 SP2 HF3), SIMATIC WinCC OA V3.16 (All versions < V3.16 P018), SIMATIC WinCC OA V3.17 (All versions < V3.17 P003), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Advanced (All versions < V16 Update 2), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Professional V13 (All versions < V13 SP2 Update 4), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Professional V14 (All versions < V14 SP1 Update 10), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Professional V15 (All versions < V15.1 Update 5), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Professional V16 (All versions < V16 Update 2), SIMATIC WinCC V7.4 (All versions < V7.4 SP1 Update 14), SIMATIC WinCC V7.5 (All versions < V7.5 SP1 Update 3), SINAMICS STARTER (All Versions < V5.4 HF2), SINAMICS Startdrive (All Versions < V16 Update 3), SINEC NMS (All versions < V1.0 SP2), SINEMA Server (All versions < V14 SP3), SINUMERIK ONE virtual (All Versions < V6.14), SINUMERIK Operate (All Versions < V6.14). A common component used by the affected applications regularly calls a helper binary with SYSTEM privileges while the call path is not quoted. This could allow a local attacker to execute arbitrary code with SYTEM privileges.

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 confidence

A common component in multiple Siemens industrial software products calls a helper binary with SYSTEM privileges using an unquoted Windows service path. This classic unquoted service path vulnerability allows a local attacker to place malicious code in the path that gets executed with elevated privileges when the service starts.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches (V4 SP2 for SIMATIC Automation Tool, V14 SP1 Update 14 for SIMATIC NET PC V14, V16 Update 3 for SIMATIC NET PC V16, V3.0 SP1 for SIMATIC PCS neo, V17 for SIMATIC ProSave, V21.8 for S7-1500 Software Controller, and corresponding updates for other affected products) to properly quote the service binary paths.

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
Simatic Automatic ToolApplication
Affected:all versions
Simatic Net PcApplication
Affected:< 16= 16
Simatic Pcs 7Application
Affected:all versions
Simatic Pcs NeoApplication
Affected:all versions
Simatic ProsaveApplication
Affected:all versions
Simatic S7 1500 Software ControllerApplication
Affected:< 21.8
Simatic Step 7Application
Affected:< 5.6>= 13, <= 16= 5.6
Simatic WinccApplication
Affected:< 7.4= 7.4= 7.5

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/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 checks

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

  1. Identify installed Siemens industrial software
    Open Programs and Features (appwiz.cpl) or check the registry at HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall for Siemens AG entries. Look for product names matching Simatic Automatic Tool, Simatic Net PC, Simatic PCS 7, Simatic PCS neo, Simatic ProSave, Simatic S7 1500 Software Controller, Simatic Step 7, or SIMATIC WinCC.
    Affected if Any of the listed Siemens products are installed on the system, especially within the version ranges specified in the CVE (all versions for some, or specific version constraints).
  2. Enumerate Windows services from Siemens software
    Open Services (services.msc) or run 'sc queryex type= service state= all' in Command Prompt. Filter results for services containing strings like 'Simatic', 'S7', 'PCS', 'ProSave', 'WinCC', 'Automation' or services from vendor 'Siemens AG'.
    Affected if A Windows service associated with any Simatic product exists on the system.
  3. Inspect service binary path configuration
    For each identified Siemens service, run 'sc qc <service_name>' in Command Prompt to query the service configuration. Check the BINARY_PATH_NAME field. Look for paths containing spaces that are not enclosed in quotation marks (for example: C:\Program Files\Siemens\bin\helper.exe arg1 arg2 instead of "C:\Program Files\Siemens\bin\helper.exe" arg1 arg2).
    Affected if The BINARY_PATH_NAME shows an unquoted path with spaces and no surrounding quotes.
  4. Verify service runs with elevated privileges
    Run 'sc qc <service_name>' and check the START_TYPE and SERVICE_START_NAME. Also run 'tasklist /svc' or check the service properties in Services MMC to confirm the account the service runs under.
    Affected if The service is configured to run automatically (START_TYPE: AUTO_START) and runs under LocalSystem, SYSTEM, or another elevated account.

If a Siemens industrial product is installed and a corresponding Windows service has an unquoted binary path containing spaces and runs with SYSTEM privileges, the environment is vulnerable to CVE-2020-7580.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.6 / 7.4 / 16 or later
Fixed in 5.67.416
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied patches (V4 SP2 for SIMATIC Automation Tool, V14 SP1 Update 14 for SIMATIC NET PC V14, V16 Update 3 for SIMATIC NET PC V16, V3.0 SP1 for SIMATIC PCS neo, V17 for SIMATIC ProSave, V21.8 for S7-1500 Software Controller, and corresponding updates for other affected products) to properly quote the service binary paths.

Fix this in Simatic Automatic Tool Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
30.0 hours of engineering $5,280
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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-2020-7580 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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