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MicrostationApplication · Bentley

CVE-2021-46652

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 View 10.15.0.75. 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-15538.

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

Buffer overflow vulnerability in Bentley View's DGN file parser allows remote code execution via malicious DGN files. The flaw triggers a write past the end of an allocated buffer during DGN parsing, enabling attackers to execute code in the context of the current process.

MitigationAvoid opening DGN files from untrusted sources. Apply vendor patches when available. Implement file type validation and consider application sandboxing to limit exploitation impact.

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
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 product
    Check if Bentley Microstation or Bentley View is installed by looking in the program files directory or checking installed applications
    Affected if The product is Bentley Microstation or Bentley View and the version is below 10.16.02
  2. Check product version
    Open Bentley Microstation or Bentley View, then go to Help > About or use the version information in the application's main menu to determine the exact version number
    Affected if The installed version is below 10.16.02 (for example, 10.16.01, 10.16.00, or earlier releases)
  3. Verify DGN file handling is in use
    Confirm the application is being used to open, view, or work with DGN files - this is the attack vector
    Affected if The user opens or processes DGN files from potentially untrusted sources with a vulnerable version

You are affected if you have Bentley Microstation or Bentley View installed with a version lower than 10.16.02 and you open DGN files with 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

Avoid opening DGN files from untrusted sources. Apply vendor patches when available. Implement file type validation and consider application sandboxing to limit exploitation impact.

Recommended fix High confidence

10.16.02

  1. Obtain the fixed version of Bentley View or MicroStation (version 10.16.02 or later) from the official Bentley website at bentley.com
  2. Backup all critical DGN files and project data before performing the upgrade
  3. Close any running instances of Bentley View or MicroStation
  4. Download the installer for version 10.16.02 or later from Bentley's official support site
  5. Run the installer and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the upgrade
  6. Verify the installation by checking the software version in the About/Help section
  7. Test that DGN files open correctly in the updated software
Caveat Review Bentley's release notes for version 10.16.02 for any compatibility notes or feature changes 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
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,800
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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-2021-46652 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