CVE-2021-46158
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 vulnerability has been identified in Simcenter Femap V2020.2 (All versions), Simcenter Femap V2021.1 (All versions). Affected application contains a stack based buffer overflow vulnerability while parsing NEU files. This could allow an attacker to execute code in the context of the current process. (ZDI-CAN-15085, ZDI-CAN-15289, ZDI-CAN-15602)
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 · high confidenceA stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in Simcenter Femap when parsing NEU (Neutral) files. The vulnerability occurs due to insufficient bounds checking during the parsing process, allowing an attacker to overwrite stack memory and achieve code execution within the context of the running application process.
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= 2020.2= 2021.1CVSS 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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Identify Simcenter Femap installed versionOpen Femap and navigate to Help > About, or check the program version through Windows Programs and Features. Compare the version number to the affected versions 2020.2 and 2021.1.Affected if The installed version is exactly 2020.2 or 2021.1
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Confirm NEU file parsing capabilityCheck if the Femap installation includes the NEU (Neutral) file import/export module. This is typically available through File > Import > Neutral or similar menu options.Affected if NEU file import functionality exists and is accessible in the application
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Locate NEU files in use or receivedSearch for .neu files on local systems, particularly in recent download folders, email attachments, or project directories that have been opened by Femap.Affected if There are NEU files present that were obtained from untrusted or external sources
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Review recent Femap crash logs or error reportsCheck Windows Event Viewer Application logs and Femap error log directories for any recent crashes related to NEU file parsing.Affected if There are crash logs or error reports mentioning NEU file processing failures
A user is affected if Simcenter Femap version 2020.2 or 2021.1 is installed and NEU files are being parsed or can be opened.
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 dataApply vendor-provided patches for Simcenter Femap V2020.2 and V2021.1 when released. Until then, avoid opening NEU files from untrusted sources and consider running the application with reduced privileges to limit impact of potential exploitation.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-46158 — 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-2021-46158 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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