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MicrostationApplication · Bentley

CVE-2021-46635

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 DGN files. Crafted data in a DGN file can trigger a write 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-15507.

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 overflow vulnerability exists in Bentley MicroStation CONNECT during DGN file parsing. Specifically, crafted data in a malicious DGN file can trigger a write operation past the end of an allocated buffer, allowing remote code execution in the context of the current user process.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied patch for Bentley MicroStation CONNECT. Until patched, restrict handling of DGN files from untrusted sources and educate users about not opening suspicious file attachments.

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 for Bentley MicroStation or Bentley View installation by examining Program Files directories (typically C:\Program Files\Bentley\MicroStation or C:\Program Files\Bentley\View) or by running 'wmic product get name,version' to list installed Bentley software
    Affected if Bentley MicroStation, MicroStation Connect, or Bentley View is installed
  2. Check product version
    Right-click the main executable (MicroStation.exe or BentleyView.exe), select Properties, and view the File Version under the Details tab. Alternatively, run 'wmic product where "name like '%MicroStation%' or name like '%View%'" get name,version'
    Affected if Version is below 10.16.02 for MicroStation/View, or version is 10.16.0.80 or below for MicroStation Connect
  3. Confirm vulnerability scope
    The vulnerability is triggered when parsing malicious DGN files. Users who open DGN files from untrusted sources with an affected version are vulnerable. No special configuration or feature toggle needs to be enabled - the flaw exists in the DGN parsing code itself.
    Affected if Affected version is installed and users process DGN files with the software

You are affected if you have Bentley MicroStation, MicroStation Connect, or Bentley View installed with a version below 10.16.02 (or 10.16.0.80 or below for Connect) and users open DGN files with that software.

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 the vendor-supplied patch for Bentley MicroStation CONNECT. Until patched, restrict handling of DGN files from untrusted sources and educate users about not opening suspicious file attachments.

Recommended fix High confidence

MicroStation and MicroStation View: upgrade to 10.16.02 or later; MicroStation Connect: upgrade to 10.16.0.81 or later (or 10.16.02)

  1. 1. Identify the exact MicroStation product and version currently installed (MicroStation, MicroStation Connect, or MicroStation View)
  2. 2. Download the fixed version from the official Bentley website or through your Bentley account
  3. 3. For MicroStation and MicroStation View: upgrade to version 10.16.02 or later
  4. 4. For MicroStation Connect: upgrade to version 10.16.0.81 or later (or version 10.16.02 which contains the fix)
  5. 5. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the version in the application's About section
  6. 6. Test that DGN files open correctly after the upgrade
Caveat Standard upgrade considerations apply - review release notes for any feature changes or migration requirements before deploying

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

Fix this in Microstation Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2021-46635 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