CVE-2021-40333
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 · uneditedWeak Password Requirements vulnerability in Hitachi Energy FOX61x, XCM20 allows an attacker to gain unauthorized access to the Data Communication Network (DCN) routing configuration. This issue affects: Hitachi Energy FOX61x versions prior to R15A. Hitachi Energy XCM20 versions prior to R15A.
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 confidenceWeak password requirements in Hitachi Energy FOX61x and XCM20 devices prior to R15A allow attackers to gain unauthorized access to the Data Communication Network (DCN) routing configuration, potentially enabling network manipulation or information disclosure.
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< r15a< r15aCVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N
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 modelLocate the device label or access the device management interface to confirm the model is either FOX61x (including FOX615) or XCM20Affected if Device is a FOX61x or XCM20 model
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Check firmware versionAccess the device firmware/version information through the management console or device status page, then compare the installed version against the R15A baselineAffected if Firmware version is below R15A (for example, R14A, R13B, etc.)
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Verify DCN routing is configuredAccess the Data Communication Network (DCN) routing configuration settings through the device management interface to determine if DCN routing functionality is enabledAffected if DCN routing configuration is present and the firmware version is below R15A
A user is affected if the device is a FOX61x or XCM20 unit running firmware prior to R15A with DCN routing configured.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpgrade affected devices to R15A or later firmware version to remediate weak password requirements and enforce stronger authentication controls.
R15A firmware
- 1. Identify the current firmware version of the affected device (FOX61x or XCM20) by accessing the device management interface
- 2. Download the R15A firmware version from the official Hitachi Energy (formerly ABB Energy Automation) support portal at search.abb.com
- 3. Review the firmware release notes for R15A to ensure compatibility with your specific device model
- 4. Create a backup of the current device configuration before proceeding with the firmware upgrade
- 5. Upload and install the R15A firmware following the manufacturer's documented upgrade procedure
- 6. After upgrade, verify the device is operational and the new firmware version is correctly installed
- 7. Change all default passwords to comply with the new password requirements enforced by R15A
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 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 $6,816.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-40333 — 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-2021-40333 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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