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Deserialization of Untrusted DataWeakness · CWE-502

CVE-2023-32736

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-11-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

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
A vulnerability has been identified in SIMATIC S7-PLCSIM V16 (All versions), SIMATIC S7-PLCSIM V17 (All versions), SIMATIC STEP 7 Safety V16 (All versions), SIMATIC STEP 7 Safety V17 (All versions < V17 Update 8), SIMATIC STEP 7 Safety V18 (All versions < V18 Update 5), SIMATIC STEP 7 V16 (All versions), SIMATIC STEP 7 V17 (All versions < V17 Update 8), SIMATIC STEP 7 V18 (All versions < V18 Update 5), SIMATIC WinCC Unified V16 (All versions), SIMATIC WinCC Unified V17 (All versions < V17 Update 8), SIMATIC WinCC Unified V18 (All versions < V18 SP5), SIMATIC WinCC V16 (All versions), SIMATIC WinCC V17 (All versions < V17 Update 8), SIMATIC WinCC V18 (All versions < V18 SP5), SIMOCODE ES V16 (All versions), SIMOCODE ES V17 (All versions < V17 Update 8), SIMOCODE ES V18 (All versions), SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.4 SP1 (All versions), SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.4 SP3 (All versions), SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.5 SP1 (All versions), SINAMICS Startdrive V16 (All versions), SINAMICS Startdrive V17 (All versions), SINAMICS Startdrive V18 (All versions), SIRIUS Safety ES V17 (TIA Portal) (All versions < V17 Update 8), SIRIUS Safety ES V18 (TIA Portal) (All versions), SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V17 (TIA Portal) (All versions < V17 Update 8), SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V18 (TIA Portal) (All versions), TIA Portal Cloud V16 (All versions), TIA Portal Cloud V17 (All versions < V4.6.0.1), TIA Portal Cloud V18 (All versions < V4.6.1.0). Affected products do not properly sanitize user-controllable input when parsing user settings. This could allow an attacker to cause a type confusion and execute arbitrary code within the affected 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 confidence

Multiple Siemens TIA Portal and related products (SIMATIC STEP 7, WinCC, PLCSIM, etc.) fail to properly sanitize user-controllable input when parsing user settings, leading to a type confusion vulnerability that can be exploited to execute arbitrary code in the context of the affected application.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied updates: upgrade to V17 Update 8 or later for affected V17 versions, V18 Update 5/SP5 or later for V18 versions, and ensure TIA Portal Cloud versions meet the specified minimum patch levels.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/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. Identify installed Siemens TIA Portal products
    Open Windows Control Panel > Programs and Features, or use PowerShell: Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*' | Where-Object {$_.DisplayName -like '*TIA Portal*' -or $_.DisplayName -like '*SIMATIC STEP 7*' -or $_.DisplayName -like '*WinCC*' -or $_.DisplayName -like '*PLCSIM*'} | Select-Object DisplayName, DisplayVersion
    Affected if Any of these Siemens products are listed in the installed programs
  2. Confirm exact version number of TIA Portal installation
    Launch TIA Portal and navigate to Help > About, or check the installation directory for a version info file. Note the full version including Update number (e.g., V17 Update 7, V18 Update 4)
    Affected if The displayed version shows an Update number lower than 8 for V17, or lower than Update 5/SP5 for V18
  3. Check if version falls within vulnerable range
    Compare your installed version against: V17 versions prior to Update 8, V18 versions prior to Update 5 or SP5. If you see only the base version number (e.g., V17.0), treat it as vulnerable until proven otherwise
    Affected if Version is V17.x before Update 8, or V18.x before Update 5/SP5, or version cannot be determined precisely
  4. Verify user settings functionality is in use
    This vulnerability exploits parsing of user settings files. Check if the installation has user-defined configurations, project files with custom settings, or imported/exported settings profiles. Look for .xml, .dat, or settings files in the project directories
    Affected if User settings files exist or have been imported into the TIA Portal environment, indicating the parsing code path is reachable

Your environment is affected if Siemens TIA Portal V17 (before Update 8) or V18 (before Update 5/SP5) is installed and the software has been used to create or load user settings.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied updates: upgrade to V17 Update 8 or later for affected V17 versions, V18 Update 5/SP5 or later for V18 versions, and ensure TIA Portal Cloud versions meet the specified minimum patch levels.

Recommended fix High confidence

Product-specific updates: V17 Update 8, V18 Update 5, V18 SP5, Cloud V4.6.0.1, Cloud V4.6.1.0 depending on product line

  1. 1. Identify the exact installed version of the affected Siemens TIA Portal product using the Siemens Industry Online Support (SIOS) portal or the application's 'About' dialog.
  2. 2. For SIMATIC STEP 7 Safety V17: Upgrade to V17 Update 8 or later.
  3. 3. For SIMATIC STEP 7 Safety V18: Upgrade to V18 Update 5 or later.
  4. 4. For SIMATIC STEP 7 V17: Upgrade to V17 Update 8 or later.
  5. 5. For SIMATIC STEP 7 V18: Upgrade to V18 Update 5 or later.
  6. 6. For SIMATIC WinCC Unified V17: Upgrade to V17 Update 8 or later.
  7. 7. For SIMATIC WinCC Unified V18: Upgrade to V18 SP5 or later.
  8. 8. For SIMATIC WinCC V17: Upgrade to V17 Update 8 or later.
Caveat Review Siemens patch notes for compatibility with existing projects and any required project migration steps before upgrading

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

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing10.0 h
  • Review / QA5.0 h
33.0 hours of engineering $5,760
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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-2023-32736 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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