Pads ViewerApplication · Siemens

CVE-2022-34285

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-07-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
A vulnerability has been identified in PADS Standard/Plus Viewer (All versions). The affected application is vulnerable to an out of bounds read past the end of an allocated buffer when parsing PCB files. An attacker could leverage this vulnerability to leak information in the context of the current process. (FG-VD-22-050)

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 · moderate confidence

PADS Standard/Plus Viewer contains an out-of-bounds read vulnerability when parsing PCB files. The application reads past the end of an allocated buffer during file parsing, allowing an attacker to leak information from process memory by crafting a malicious PCB file.

MitigationAvoid opening untrusted or unverified PCB files with the viewer until an official patch is released from the vendor. Contact Mentor Graphics/PTC for patched versions.

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
Pads ViewerApplication
Affected:all versions

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
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

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. Confirm PADS Viewer installation
    Check system for PADS Standard Viewer or PADS Plus Viewer application. Look in Program Files for folders containing 'PADS' or check Windows Add/Remove Programs for PADS-related entries.
    Affected if The software is installed on the system
  2. Locate the executable
    Search for executable files named 'pads_viewer.exe', 'pads.exe', or similar PADS viewer binaries. Common paths include C:\MentorGraphics\PADS\ or C:\Program Files\Siemens\.
    Affected if PADS Viewer executable exists on the system
  3. Identify PCB file association
    Check if .pcb file extensions are associated with the PADS Viewer application. Right-click a PCB file and view 'Open with' or check Windows Registry under HKCR\.pcb
    Affected if PCB files are associated with the PADS Viewer
  4. Verify vulnerable component is present
    Confirm the PCB parsing module is present by locating the main application directory containing parsing-related DLLs or executables used for file I/O.
    Affected if The file parsing component exists (present in all installed versions)
  5. Check for untrusted PCB file handling
    Review whether the viewer is configured to automatically open or preview PCB files from untrusted sources, network shares, or email attachments.
    Affected if The application can be triggered to open arbitrary PCB files

If PADS Standard or Plus Viewer is installed, the system is affected since all versions contain the vulnerability when parsing malicious PCB 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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Avoid opening untrusted or unverified PCB files with the viewer until an official patch is released from the vendor. Contact Mentor Graphics/PTC for patched versions.

Fix this in Pads Viewer Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,360
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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2022-34285 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