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MicrostationApplication · Bentley

CVE-2021-46605

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-02-18
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 MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80. 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 BMP images. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a heap-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-15399.

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 confidence

Heap-based buffer overflow in Bentley MicroStation CONNECT's BMP image parser. The vulnerability results from insufficient validation of user-supplied data length before copying to a heap buffer, allowing remote code execution via a malicious BMP file.

MitigationApply vendor patch when available; until then, enforce least privilege and train users to avoid opening untrusted BMP files from unknown sources.

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
MicrostationApplication
Affected:< 10.16.02
Microstation ConnectApplication
Affected:<= 10.16.0.80
ViewApplication
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 Bentley product
    Check installed programs for Bentley MicroStation, Bentley MicroStation Connect, or Bentley View. Look in Programs and Features or check the installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Bentley\)
    Affected if Any of these three products are installed
  2. Determine installed version
    Right-click the executable (often named MicroStation.exe, BentleyView.exe, or similar in the program directory), select Properties, and view the Version tab. Alternatively, run the program and check Help > About
    Affected if Version is below 10.16.02 for MicroStation/View, or 10.16.0.80 or lower for MicroStation Connect
  3. Confirm vulnerability applies to your product
    If MicroStation is installed and version < 10.16.02, or MicroStation Connect is <= 10.16.0.80, or View < 10.16.02, the BMP parser component is vulnerable by default (no configuration change needed)
    Affected if The installed version falls within any of the affected ranges listed above and the product can open BMP image files (default capability)
  4. Assess exposure to untrusted BMP files
    Check user workflows for opening BMP files from external or untrusted sources. Search for recently downloaded or received BMP files in download folders, email attachments, or network shares
    Affected if Users routinely open BMP files from untrusted or unknown sources without verification

You are affected if Bentley MicroStation (any variant) or Bentley View is installed with a version below the patched releases (10.16.02 or 10.16.0.80) AND users can open BMP files in the application.

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

Apply vendor patch when available; until then, enforce least privilege and train users to avoid opening untrusted BMP files from unknown sources.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

MicroStation/View: version 10.16.02 or later; MicroStation Connect: version > 10.16.0.80 (10.16.02 recommended)

  1. 1. Verify current MicroStation installation by opening the application and navigating to Help > About MicroStation
  2. 2. For MicroStation (standalone) and MicroStation View: Upgrade to version 10.16.02 or later
  3. 3. For MicroStation Connect: Upgrade to a version newer than 10.16.0.80 (recommended: 10.16.02 or later)
  4. 4. Download the updated version from the official Bentley website at https://www.bentley.com/
  5. 5. Uninstall the current version or run the installer to perform an in-place upgrade
  6. 6. Restart the application after installation completes
  7. 7. Validate the fix by testing BMP file parsing functionality
Caveat Review release notes for version 10.16.02 for any feature changes or deprecated functionality before upgrading production systems

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

Fix this in Microstation Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,720
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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-2021-46605 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