CVE-2023-28765
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 · uneditedAn attacker with basic privileges in SAP BusinessObjects Business Intelligence Platform (Promotion Management) - versions 420, 430, can get access to lcmbiar file and further decrypt the file. After this attacker can gain access to BI user’s passwords and depending on the privileges of the BI user, the attacker can perform operations that can completely compromise the application.
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 confidenceIn SAP BusinessObjects Business Intelligence Platform versions 420 and 430, the Promotion Management component stores BI platform credentials in an encrypted lcmbiar file. An attacker with basic user privileges can access this file and decrypt it, exposing user passwords in plaintext. Using these credentials, the attacker can impersonate users and perform operations based on their privileges, potentially achieving full application compromise.
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= 420= 430CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify SAP BusinessObjects versionCheck the installed SAP BusinessObjects Business Intelligence Platform version in the Central Management Console (CMC) under 'About' or via the SAP BusinessObjects Diagnostic Tool. Look for version numbers 420 or 430.Affected if The installed version is 420 or 430.
-
Locate lcmbiar files in the environmentSearch for files with the .lcmbiar extension in the file system, particularly in Promotion Management job directories, input/output folders, or backup locations. Common paths include the input and output directories configured for LCM (Lifecycle Management) promotion jobs.Affected if One or more .lcmbiar files exist in the environment.
-
Verify Promotion Management access permissionsIn the Central Management Console (CMC), navigate to the Promotion Management application and review user/group permissions. Check which users or groups have Read access to the Promotion Management node and its associated lcmbiar files.Affected if basic users (non-admin) have Read or higher permissions to Promotion Management content.
-
Review file system permissions on lcmbiar filesExamine file system access control lists (ACLs) on discovered .lcmbiar files. Verify which operating system users or groups can read these files.Affected if basic or non-privileged OS users can read the .lcmbiar files.
-
Check audit logs for lcmbiar file accessReview SAP BusinessObjects audit logs and system logs for recent access to .lcmbiar files, particularly by users with standard/non-administrative roles. Look for Promotion Management job executions and file export activities.Affected if Audit logs show lcmbiar file access by basic users.
Your environment is affected if you are running BusinessObjects version 420 or 430 AND basic users have access to read .lcmbiar files from Promotion Management, which would allow them to decrypt stored credentials.
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 the relevant SAP security patch for CVE-2023-28765 immediately. Additionally, restrict and audit access to Promotion Management features, review user permissions on lcmbiar files, and consider rotating exposed credentials.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,968.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-28765 — 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-2023-28765 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data