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UnidataApplication · Rocketsoftware

CVE-2023-28504

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-03-29
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 12.2.1 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
Rocket Software UniData versions prior to 8.2.4 build 3003 and UniVerse versions prior to 11.3.5 build 1001 or 12.2.1 build 2002 suffer from a stack-based buffer overflow that can lead to remote code execution as the root user.

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

A stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability in Rocket Software UniData and UniVerse allows remote unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary code with root privileges by overflowing a stack-allocated buffer in versions prior to UniData 8.2.4 build 3003, UniVerse 11.3.5 build 1001, or UniVerse 12.2.1 build 2002.

MitigationUpgrade to the fixed versions (UniData 8.2.4 build 3003, UniVerse 11.3.5 build 1001, or UniVerse 12.2.1 build 2002 or later); apply network segmentation and restrict access to UniData/UniVerse services as immediate compensating controls until patching is complete.

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
UnidataApplication
Affected:<= 8.2.4
UniverseApplication
Affected:<= 11.3.5>= 12.0.0, <= 12.2.1

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify UniData or UniVerse installation
    Check for running processes named 'unidata', 'universe', 'ud', or 'uv' using commands like 'ps aux | grep -iE "unidata|universe"' or check common installation directories such as /opt/uniData, /opt/uniVerse, or C:\UniData on Windows.
    Affected if No UniData or UniVerse processes or installations are found.
  2. Identify the exact product and version
    Run the product's version command, typically 'ud -version' for UniData or 'uv -version' for UniVerse, or check the LICENSE file in the installation directory for the exact release version number.
    Affected if The installed version cannot be determined or the product is not installed.
  3. Obtain the build number
    Check the build information via the version output, release notes, or examine the binary file properties if available. The build number is required to distinguish between vulnerable and fixed versions.
    Affected if The build number is not available or cannot be retrieved.
  4. Compare UniData version against affected ranges
    For UniData: If version is 8.2.4 or lower, verify the build number is less than 3003. Versions above 8.2.4 are not affected.
    Affected if UniData version is 8.2.4 with build lower than 3003, or any version 8.2.4 and below.
  5. Compare UniVerse version against affected ranges
    For UniVerse: Check if version is 11.3.5 or lower (build < 1001), OR between 12.0.0 and 12.2.1 inclusive (build < 2002). Versions outside these ranges are not affected.
    Affected if UniVerse version is 11.3.5 with build lower than 1001, or between 12.0.0 and 12.2.1 with build lower than 2002.
  6. Assess network exposure
    Check if the UniData/UniVerse service ports (commonly 31438, 31439, or as configured) are exposed to untrusted networks. Use 'netstat -an | grep -E "31438|31439"' or review firewall rules.
    Affected if The service is listening on network interfaces accessible from untrusted networks.

The environment is affected if UniData version is 8.2.4 build 3002 or lower, or UniVerse version is 11.3.5 build 1000 or lower, or between 12.0.0 and 12.2.1 build 2001 or lower, AND the service is network accessible.

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 a release after 12.2.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to the fixed versions (UniData 8.2.4 build 3003, UniVerse 11.3.5 build 1001, or UniVerse 12.2.1 build 2002 or later); apply network segmentation and restrict access to UniData/UniVerse services as immediate compensating controls until patching is complete.

Recommended fix High confidence

UniData 8.2.4 build 3003 / UniVerse 11.3.5 build 1001 / UniVerse 12.2.1 build 2002

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Rocket Software UniData or UniVerse version and build number
  2. 2. For UniData users: Upgrade to version 8.2.4 build 3003 or later
  3. 3. For UniVerse users on 11.x line: Upgrade to version 11.3.5 build 1001 or later
  4. 4. For UniVerse users on 12.x line: Upgrade to version 12.2.1 build 2002 or later
  5. 5. After upgrade, verify the new version and build number match the fixed releases
  6. 6. Test critical workflows to ensure functionality is maintained
  7. 7. Review release notes for any additional security hardening or configuration requirements
Caveat Review release notes for version-specific changes; minor version upgrades within the same major version typically have low breaking change risk

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

Fix this in Unidata Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
26.0 hours of engineering $4,560
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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-2023-28504 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