CVE-2022-38661
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 · uneditedHCL Workload Automation could allow a local user to overwrite key system files which would cause the system to crash.
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 confidenceHCL Workload Automation contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability that allows a local authenticated user to overwrite critical system files. This is likely due to improper file permission handling or insufficient access controls on certain directories or configuration files, enabling a local attacker to modify system files and cause a denial of service through system crashes.
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<= 9.4.0.7>= 9.5.0.0, <= 9.5.0.5CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed HCL Workload Automation versionCheck the version of HCL Workload Automation installed in your environment. This can typically be found in the product's version file, installation directory, or by running product-specific version commands. Common locations include the installation root directory or through the product's console interface.Affected if The installed version is 9.4.0.7 or lower, OR between 9.5.0.0 and 9.5.0.5 inclusive.
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Locate HCL Workload Automation installation directoriesFind the primary installation directory for HCL Workload Automation. This is typically where the application binaries, configuration files, and runtime data are stored. Common locations include /opt/hcl/wa or C:\Program Files\HCL\WorkloadAutomation on Windows.Affected if You cannot locate the installation directory or it does not exist, then HCL Workload Automation may not be present.
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Inspect file permissions on configuration directoriesExamine the write permissions on key configuration directories within the HCL Workload Automation installation, particularly directories containing system configuration files, security settings, and runtime configuration files. Use OS-native commands such as 'ls -la' on Unix/Linux or 'icacls' on Windows to view ACLs.Affected if Low-privileged or non-administrative local users have write access to critical configuration directories.
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Check permissions on system executable directoriesReview write permissions on directories that contain executables, scripts, or binaries that run with elevated privileges. Look for directories where the application places scripts or executables that are invoked during normal operations.Affected if Authenticated local users can write to directories containing privileged executables or scripts.
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Verify file ownership and write access on critical filesIdentify and inspect critical system files used by HCL Workload Automation, particularly configuration files, log files, and files in system directories. Check ownership and access control lists to determine if authenticated local users can modify these files.Affected if Non-admin users have write permissions to system-critical files or configuration files that are processed with elevated privileges.
Your environment is affected if HCL Workload Automation version falls within the affected ranges AND low-privileged local users have write access to critical directories or configuration files used by the application.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataApply vendor-supplied patches for HCL Workload Automation. Additionally, review and enforce strict file permissions on system directories and configuration files to prevent unauthorized write access by low-privileged local users.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-38661 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-38661 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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
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