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Automation StudioApplication · Br Automation

CVE-2021-22282

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-02
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 4.12 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

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
Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection') vulnerability in B&R Industrial Automation Automation Studio allows Local Execution of Code.This issue affects Automation Studio: from 4.0 through 4.12.

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

A code injection vulnerability in B&R Industrial Automation Automation Studio versions 4.0 through 4.12 allows local attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems. The vulnerability stems from improper control of code generation, likely due to insufficient input validation or unsafe deserialization in the Automation Studio environment.

MitigationUpgrade Automation Studio to a patched version beyond 4.12. If immediate patching is not feasible, restrict local access to the system, limit user privileges, and implement application whitelisting to mitigate code injection risks.

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
Automation StudioApplication
Affected:>= 4.0, <= 4.12

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
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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. Verify Automation Studio is installed
    Look for B&R Automation Studio in the system. Check Program Files or Program Files (x86) directories for a folder named 'B&R Automation Studio' or similar. You can also use PowerShell: Get-ChildItem 'C:\Program Files*\*Automation*Studio*' -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    Affected if Automation Studio is not found on the system, so the vulnerability does not apply
  2. Locate the main executable
    Find the primary Automation Studio executable, commonly named 'BrAutomationStudio.exe' or similar within the installation folder. Note the full path to the executable for version checking
    Affected if The main executable cannot be located, meaning the installation may be incomplete or corrupted
  3. Check the installed version
    Right-click the executable, select Properties, then go to the Details tab to view the File Version. Alternatively, use PowerShell: (Get-Item 'path\to\BrAutomationStudio.exe').VersionInfo.FileVersion
    Affected if The version cannot be determined or the file does not exist
  4. Compare version to affected range
    Verify if the installed version is >= 4.0 and <= 4.12. Note that versions 4.0 through 4.12 inclusive are affected by this CVE
    Affected if Installed version is 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8, 4.9, 4.10, 4.11, or 4.12 - the system is vulnerable

Your environment is affected if B&R Automation Studio version 4.0 through 4.12 is installed on the system.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 4.12
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Automation Studio to a patched version beyond 4.12. If immediate patching is not feasible, restrict local access to the system, limit user privileges, and implement application whitelisting to mitigate code injection risks.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Automation Studio 4.13 or later

  1. Verify current Automation Studio version by opening the application and checking 'Help' > 'About Automation Studio'
  2. Contact B&R Industrial Automation technical support or visit their official download portal to obtain Automation Studio version 4.13 or later
  3. Download the installer for the fixed version from the official B&R website or your authorized B&R representative
  4. Before installing, backup all current projects, libraries, and configurations
  5. Close all running instances of Automation Studio and any related B&R services
  6. Run the installer with administrative privileges and follow the on-screen installation wizard
  7. After installation, verify the new version by checking 'Help' > 'About Automation Studio' to confirm the version is >= 4.13
  8. Test critical projects in a development environment to ensure functionality before deploying to production
Caveat Review B&R release notes for version 4.13 to check for any breaking changes or required project migrations before upgrading production systems

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Automation Studio Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,900
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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-2021-22282 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