CVE-2021-38394
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 · uneditedAn attacker with physical access to the device can extract the binary that checks for the hardware key and reverse engineer it, which could be used to create a physical duplicate of a valid hardware key. The hardware key allows access to special settings when inserted.
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 confidenceThe vulnerability allows an attacker with physical access to extract the binary responsible for hardware key authentication and reverse engineer it. This enables creation of physical duplicates of valid hardware keys that grant access to special settings. The core issue is insufficient protection of the authentication binary and lack of tamper-resistant key storage.
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 dataall versionsCVSS 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
- Physical
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify device model and firmware versionLocate the product label on the Boston Scientific Zoom Latitude Programmer/Recorder/Monitor 3120 and record the firmware version displayed in the device system information or startup screenAffected if The device is a Boston Scientific Zoom Latitude model 3120 running any firmware version
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Verify physical security controlsInspect the device enclosure for tamper-evident seals, locks, or physical access controls that prevent unauthorized openingAffected if Physical security controls are absent, compromised, or can be bypassed allowing access to internal components
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Check for secure boot statusAccess device settings or BIOS/boot configuration to verify if secure boot with signed binaries is enabled (if accessible to end users)Affected if Secure boot is disabled or not implemented on the device
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Assess authentication binary protectionIf filesystem or storage access is available, locate the authentication binary and verify if it is stored in an encrypted format or protected read-only partitionAffected if The authentication binary is stored in plaintext or an unprotected storage location accessible without authentication
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Review key storage mechanismsExamine device documentation or settings for evidence of hardware security module (HSM), secure element, or encrypted key storage implementationAffected if Static keys are stored in plaintext or unprotected storage rather than in tamper-resistant hardware security modules
You are affected if you have a Boston Scientific Zoom Latitude 3120 device where physical access controls are insufficient to prevent binary extraction or where authentication keys are stored without hardware-level protection.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataImplement secure boot with signed binaries to prevent extraction/modification, use encrypted key storage with hardware security module (HSM) or secure element, and transition to challenge-response authentication instead of static key comparison.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation40.0 h
- Testing16.0 h
- Review / QA8.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $20,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-38394 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-38394 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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
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