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FtlApplication · Tibco

CVE-2021-28820

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-03-23
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.6.0 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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
The FTL Server (tibftlserver), FTL C API, FTL Golang API, FTL Java API, and FTL .Net API components of TIBCO Software Inc.'s TIBCO FTL - Community Edition, TIBCO FTL - Developer Edition, and TIBCO FTL - Enterprise Edition contain a vulnerability that theoretically allows a low privileged attacker with local access on the Windows operating system to insert malicious software. The affected component can be abused to execute the malicious software inserted by the attacker with the elevated privileges of the component. This vulnerability results from the affected component searching for run-time artifacts outside of the installation hierarchy. Affected releases are TIBCO Software Inc.'s TIBCO FTL - Community Edition: versions 6.5.0 and below, TIBCO FTL - Developer Edition: versions 6.5.0 and below, and TIBCO FTL - Enterprise Edition: versions 6.5.0 and below.

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

TIBCO FTL components (FTL Server, C API, Golang API, Java API, .Net API) running on Windows execute with elevated privileges but search for run-time artifacts (likely DLLs/binaries) in locations outside the installation hierarchy. A low-privileged local Windows attacker can place malicious files in these search paths, which will then be executed with the elevated privileges of the FTL component.

MitigationUpdate to TIBCO FTL version 6.6.0 or later. Additionally, restrict write access to directories in the component's search path to prevent low-privileged users from planting malicious run-time artifacts.

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
FtlApplication
Affected:< 6.6.0

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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify if TIBCO FTL is installed
    Look for TIBCO FTL installation directory on Windows, typically under C:\tibco\ftl\ or C:\Program Files\TIBCO\ftl\. Use PowerShell: Get-ChildItem -Path 'C:\' -Recurse -Directory -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Where-Object {$_.Name -match 'ftl'}
    Affected if TIBCO FTL directory exists on the system
  2. Check installed FTL version
    Locate the version file or executable in the TIBCO FTL installation directory. Check files like version.txt, or the FTL server executable properties. Compare the version number to 6.6.0
    Affected if Installed version is lower than 6.6.0
  3. Confirm Windows operating system
    Verify the operating system is Windows. Run 'systeminfo | findstr /B /C:"OS Name"' or check environment variable OS equals 'Windows_NT'
    Affected if Operating system is Windows and FTL is installed
  4. Inspect FTL component search paths
    Examine environment variables and configuration files used by FTL components (FTL Server, C API, Golang API, Java API, .Net API). Check PATH variable, FTL configuration files, and any settings that define library or binary search locations. Look for paths that reference locations outside the FTL installation folder such as system directories or user-writable locations
    Affected if Search paths include directories outside the FTL installation hierarchy that are writable by low-privileged users

A system is affected if TIBCO FTL version below 6.6.0 is installed on Windows and its runtime search paths include directories writable by low-privileged users outside the installation hierarchy.

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 6.6.0 or later
Fixed in 6.6.0
Interim mitigation

Update to TIBCO FTL version 6.6.0 or later. Additionally, restrict write access to directories in the component's search path to prevent low-privileged users from planting malicious run-time artifacts.

Fix this in Ftl Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.

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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-2021-28820 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