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Bentley ViewApplication · Bentley

CVE-2021-34914

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-01-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.16.02 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
This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Bentley View 10.15.0.75. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file. The specific flaw exists within the parsing of DGN files. Crafted data in a DGN file can trigger a write past the end of an allocated buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-14892.

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

Buffer overflow vulnerability in Bentley View's DGN file parser allows remote code execution. The flaw is triggered when parsing specially crafted DGN files containing data that writes past the end of an allocated buffer. Exploitation requires user interaction—either opening a malicious DGN file or visiting a malicious page that triggers file processing.

MitigationUsers should not open untrusted DGN files and should only open files from trusted sources. Apply vendor patches when available and run Bentley View with least privilege to limit impact of potential exploitation.

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
Bentley ViewApplication
Affected:< 10.16.02
MicrostationApplication
Affected:< 10.16.02

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. Identify installed product
    Check whether Bentley View or MicroStation is installed. On Windows, look in Program Files for 'Bentley' folder or check Add/Remove Programs.
    Affected if Either Bentley View or MicroStation is installed
  2. Check product version
    Open the application, then navigate to Help > About, or check the executable properties (right-click the .exe file > Properties > Details) to find the exact version number.
    Affected if Version is lower than 10.16.02
  3. Confirm DGN file handling is enabled
    The DGN parser is a core component of these products. Verify the application can open .dgn files by checking file association settings or trying to open a sample DGN file.
    Affected if DGN file parsing functionality is available and enabled in the application
  4. Review recent file access logs if available
    Check Windows Event Viewer, application logs, or antivirus logs for recent .dgn file open events, particularly from untrusted or external sources.
    Affected if Suspicious DGN files from untrusted sources were recently opened

A user is affected if Bentley View or MicroStation is installed with a version lower than 10.16.02 and the DGN file parser is 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 10.16.02 or later
Fixed in 10.16.02
Interim mitigation

Users should not open untrusted DGN files and should only open files from trusted sources. Apply vendor patches when available and run Bentley View with least privilege to limit impact of potential exploitation.

Recommended fix High confidence

10.16.02 or later

  1. 1. Verify current installation of Bentley View or MicroStation by opening the application and navigating to Help > About
  2. 2. If version is below 10.16.02, download the fixed version (10.16.02 or later) from the official Bentley Bentley.com support portal
  3. 3. Close all Bentley applications before installation
  4. 4. Run the installer with administrative privileges
  5. 5. Follow the on-screen installation wizard prompts
  6. 6. After installation, verify the new version number matches 10.16.02 or later
  7. 7. Test that DGN files open correctly in the updated application
Caveat Minor version upgrades typically retain compatibility; however, test critical DGN workflows after upgrading

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

Fix this in Bentley View 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
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $8,448.

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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-2021-34914 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