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MicrostationApplication · Bentley

CVE-2021-46612

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 PDF files. Crafted data in a PDF file can trigger a read past the end of an allocated buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-15406.

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

A buffer over-read vulnerability exists in the PDF parsing component of Bentley MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80. Attackers can exploit this by tricking users into opening malicious PDF files, causing a read past the end of an allocated buffer and potentially executing arbitrary code in the context of the current process.

MitigationUsers should avoid opening untrusted PDF files until an official vendor patch is available. Organizations should implement network filtering and user education to reduce exposure to malicious file-based attacks.

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
    Open the application and go to Help > About Bentley [Product Name], or check Add/Remove Programs in Windows Control Panel to see if MicroStation, MicroStation Connect, or Bentley View is installed
    Affected if The installed product is MicroStation, MicroStation Connect, or Bentley View
  2. Determine the installed version number
    In the application, go to Help > About and locate the version string (for example, it may show as 10.16.0.80 or 10.16.0.x). Note the full version number including build number if displayed
    Affected if The version cannot be determined or is unknown
  3. Compare against affected version ranges
    Compare your installed version to these thresholds: Bentley MicroStation versions < 10.16.02, Bentley MicroStation Connect versions <= 10.16.0.80, or Bentley View versions < 10.16.02
    Affected if Your version is below 10.16.02 for MicroStation or View, or is 10.16.0.80 or lower for MicroStation Connect
  4. Confirm PDF functionality is in use
    The vulnerability exists in the PDF parsing component. Check if the application has PDF import or viewing capabilities enabled and if users commonly open PDF files in the environment
    Affected if PDF files can be opened or imported in the application and untrusted PDFs may be processed

You are affected if the installed Bentley product version is below 10.16.02 (or <= 10.16.0.80 for MicroStation Connect) and the PDF parsing feature is used to open files.

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

Users should avoid opening untrusted PDF files until an official vendor patch is available. Organizations should implement network filtering and user education to reduce exposure to malicious file-based attacks.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

MicroStation and MicroStation View: upgrade to version 10.16.02 or later. MicroStation Connect: upgrade to version 10.16.0.81 or later (or 10.16.02 if that version is available)

  1. Identify the currently installed Bentley MicroStation product and version (MicroStation, MicroStation Connect, or MicroStation View)
  2. Navigate to the Bentley product download page or contact Bentley customer support
  3. Download and install MicroStation version 10.16.02 or later for standard MicroStation
  4. Download and install MicroStation Connect version 10.16.0.81 or later (if available) or version 10.16.02 which contains the fix
  5. Download and install MicroStation View version 10.16.02 or later
  6. Verify the installation was successful by checking the About section for the updated version number
  7. Test that PDF files can still be opened and viewed correctly in the updated version
Caveat Review Bentley's release notes for version 10.16.02 to check for any compatibility issues with custom workflows or older file formats

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

Fix this in Microstation Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
32.0 hours of engineering $5,600
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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-2021-46612 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