CVE-2022-38773
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 · uneditedAffected devices do not contain an Immutable Root of Trust in Hardware. With this the integrity of the code executed on the device can not be validated during load-time. An attacker with physical access to the device could use this to replace the boot image of the device and execute arbitrary code.
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 confidenceAffected devices lack an immutable hardware-based root of trust, preventing validation of code integrity during the boot process. An attacker with physical access can replace the device's boot image and execute arbitrary code by bypassing the missing secure boot validation mechanism.
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 dataall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsall versionsCVSS 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
- Physical
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the device modelLocate the Siemens device nameplate, product marking, or check the device inventory/asset management system for the exact model number (e.g., Simatic S7 1500 Cpu 1511 1 Pn)Affected if The device model matches any of the affected products listed in the CVE (Simatic Drive Controller Cpu 1504d Tf, Cpu 1507d Tf, or any Simatic S7 1500 Cpu variant from 1510sp to 1511f/1511t/1511c)
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Check the firmware versionAccess the device engineering software (e.g., TIA Portal) or the device web interface to retrieve the installed firmware versionAffected if Any firmware version is installed on one of the affected device models (all versions are vulnerable)
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Verify secure boot statusConsult the device hardware manual or access device security settings to determine whether hardware-based secure boot with immutable root of trust is implemented and enabledAffected if Secure boot validation is absent, disabled, or not available on the device (this is the root cause of the vulnerability)
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Assess physical security controlsInspect the deployment location for physical access controls (locked cabinets, restricted access areas, tamper-evident seals)Affected if Physical access by unauthorized personnel is possible, enabling an attacker to replace the boot image
You are affected if any of the listed Siemens Simatic device models are deployed, regardless of firmware version, because the vulnerability stems from the lack of secure boot implementation in the hardware design itself.
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 dataImplement hardware-based immutable root of trust with secure boot chain-of-trust validation to ensure code integrity is verified at load-time before execution.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation40.0 h
- Testing16.0 h
- Review / QA8.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $20,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-38773 — 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-2022-38773 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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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.
- 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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