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Fme ServerApplication · Safe

CVE-2022-38342

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-09-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2021.2.6.0 / 2022.0.0.2 or later.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable Zero-click

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
Safe Software FME Server v2021.2.5, v2022.0.0.2 and below was discovered to contain a XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability which allows authenticated attackers to perform data exfiltration or Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) attacks.

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

Safe Software FME Server versions 2021.2.5, 2022.0.0.2 and below contain an XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability in XML parsing functionality. An authenticated attacker can craft malicious XML input to reference external entities, enabling data exfiltration from server files or internal resources via SSRF attacks.

MitigationUpgrade FME Server to a version beyond the vulnerable releases (2021.2.5 and 2022.0.0.2). Alternatively, configure the XML parser to disable external entity processing and validate XML input strictly.

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
Fme ServerApplication
Affected:< 2021.2.6.0>= 2022.0.0.0, < 2022.0.0.2

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/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. Identify installed FME Server version
    Access the FME Server web interface and navigate to Help > About, or check the version via the FME Server installation directory and release notes. Alternatively, query the FME Server REST API endpoint if accessible.
    Affected if The version is 2021.2.5 or below, or falls between 2022.0.0.0 and 2022.0.0.1 (inclusive). These versions are within the vulnerable range.
  2. Confirm XML parsing functionality is accessible
    Identify if FME Server workflows or endpoints that accept XML input are published and accessible. Review FME Server workspaces that use XML transformers or XML-related readers/writers, or check for exposed REST API endpoints that process XML payloads.
    Affected if The server hosts any published FME Server applications, workspaces, or REST endpoints that process user-supplied XML data.
  3. Check XML parser security configuration
    Examine the FME Server configuration files (typically in the Server directory) for XML parser settings, or review any custom XML processing code for configured entity resolution settings. Look for features related to external entity processing.
    Affected if The XML parser configuration allows external entity processing or has not been hardened to disable external entity resolution, which is the default vulnerable state in affected versions.
  4. Verify attacker authentication possibility
    Review whether user authentication is enabled on FME Server and determine if untrusted or low-privilege accounts can access XML-processing endpoints. Check user role assignments for XML-related workflows.
    Affected if Untrusted or low-privilege authenticated users can access XML-processing functionality, as the CVE requires an authenticated attacker.

A user is affected if FME Server runs a vulnerable version (2021.2.5 or below, or 2022.0.0.0-2022.0.0.1) AND has XML parsing functionality accessible to authenticated users without hardened parser configuration.

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 2021.2.6.0 / 2022.0.0.2 or later
Fixed in 2021.2.6.02022.0.0.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade FME Server to a version beyond the vulnerable releases (2021.2.5 and 2022.0.0.2). Alternatively, configure the XML parser to disable external entity processing and validate XML input strictly.

Recommended fix High confidence

FME Server 2021.2.6.0 or later; FME Server 2022.0.0.2 or later

  1. 1. Back up your current FME Server configuration and databases
  2. 2. Identify your current FME Server version (2021.x or 2022.x branch)
  3. 3. For FME Server 2021.x: Upgrade to version 2021.2.6.0 or later
  4. 4. For FME Server 2022.x: Upgrade to version 2022.0.0.2 or later
  5. 5. After upgrade, verify the XML parsing configuration disables external entity processing as an additional hardening measure
  6. 6. Test critical workflows to ensure functionality is maintained
Caveat Review release notes for your specific version upgrade path as minor version jumps may include configuration or feature changes

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

Fix this in Fme Server 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-2022-38342 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