CVE-2021-38438
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 · uneditedA use after free vulnerability in FATEK Automation WinProladder versions 3.30 and prior may be exploited when a valid user opens a malformed project file, which may allow arbitrary code execution.
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 confidenceA use-after-free vulnerability exists in FATEK Automation WinProladder versions 3.30 and prior where parsing a malformed project file leads to freed memory being accessed, allowing arbitrary code execution when a valid user opens the malicious file.
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<= 3.30CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Locate WinProladder installationSearch for WinProladder executable (WinProladder.exe) in typical program directories or use system search tools to find the applicationAffected if WinProladder is not found on the system - not affected
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Identify installed versionRight-click the WinProladder.exe file, select Properties, and check the Version or Product Version field in the Details tabAffected if Version displays 3.30 or lower - affected
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Confirm version via application helpOpen WinProladder, navigate to Help > About or Help > Product Information to view the exact version numberAffected if Version shows 3.30 or any version prior to 3.30 - affected
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Assess file opening capabilityVerify if the software is configured to open .prj project files or if users routinely import project files from external sourcesAffected if Users can open project files in WinProladder and version is 3.30 or prior - vulnerable to this CVE
System is affected if WinProladder version 3.30 or prior is installed and users can open project files, as the use-after-free triggers during malformed project file parsing.
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 dataDo not open untrusted project files in WinProladder; update to a patched version beyond 3.30 when available and apply network segmentation in OT environments.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $8,448.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-38438 — 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-2021-38438 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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- 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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