WebaccessApplication · Advantech

CVE-2021-33023

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-10-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 9.0.2 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
Advantech WebAccess versions 9.02 and prior are vulnerable to a heap-based buffer overflow, which may allow an attacker to remotely execute code.

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

Advantech WebAccess versions 9.02 and prior contain a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in the web interface component. This memory corruption flaw can be exploited remotely, potentially allowing an attacker to achieve arbitrary code execution on the affected system.

MitigationUpgrade Advantech WebAccess to a version beyond 9.02 as soon as vendor patches become available. Until then, isolate affected systems on a restricted network segment and block external access to the WebAccess HTTP/HTTPS ports.

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
WebaccessApplication
Affected:<= 9.0.2

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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. Confirm Advantech WebAccess installation
    Check for WebAccess installation directories or services on the system. Common installation paths on Windows include C:\Advantech\WebAccess or check Windows Services for a 'WebAccess' service entry.
    Affected if Advantech WebAccess software is present on the system
  2. Determine installed WebAccess version
    Locate version information in the installation directory (often in an About dialog, version.txt, or readme file) or check Windows Programs and Features. The version format is X.X.X (for example, 9.0.2, 8.1.0).
    Affected if Installed version is 9.0.2 or any earlier version (any version <= 9.0.2)
  3. Verify web interface component is running
    Confirm the WebAccess web service is active. Check Windows Services for the WebAccess service status, or verify the web server is listening on common ports (80, 443, or custom ports like 8080) associated with WebAccess.
    Affected if Web interface component is enabled and the service is running
  4. Check network exposure of web ports
    Review firewall rules and network configuration to identify if WebAccess HTTP/HTTPS ports are exposed to network segments outside the local system. Use netstat or port scanning tools to identify which interfaces the web service binds to.
    Affected if WebAccess web interface ports are accessible from untrusted or external networks

The environment is affected if Advantech WebAccess version 9.0.2 or earlier is installed with the web interface component enabled and network-accessible.

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 9.0.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Advantech WebAccess to a version beyond 9.02 as soon as vendor patches become available. Until then, isolate affected systems on a restricted network segment and block external access to the WebAccess HTTP/HTTPS ports.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Advantech WebAccess version greater than 9.0.2 (contact vendor for exact fixed release)

  1. 1. Identify the current installed version of Advantech WebAccess
  2. 2. Contact Advantech technical support or visit their official download portal to obtain the latest version
  3. 3. Before upgrading, back up all WebAccess configurations, project files, and databases
  4. 4. Review upgrade documentation for any prerequisites or migration requirements
  5. 5. Stop all WebAccess services before performing the upgrade
  6. 6. Install the latest version of Advantech WebAccess (version greater than 9.0.2)
  7. 7. Restore configurations from the backup if needed
  8. 8. Restart WebAccess services and verify the application is functioning correctly
Caveat Review upgrade documentation for any configuration changes or migration steps required when moving from older versions

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

Fix this in Webaccess Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
24.0 hours of engineering $4,160
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,656.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2021-33023 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