dbcve.org
Web DispatcherApplication · Sap

CVE-2023-33987

CRITICAL · 9.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-07-11
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
An unauthenticated attacker in SAP Web Dispatcher - versions WEBDISP 7.49, WEBDISP 7.53, WEBDISP 7.54, WEBDISP 7.77, WEBDISP 7.81, WEBDISP 7.85, WEBDISP 7.88, WEBDISP 7.89, WEBDISP 7.90, KERNEL 7.49, KERNEL 7.53, KERNEL 7.54 KERNEL 7.77, KERNEL 7.81, KERNEL 7.85, KERNEL 7.88, KERNEL 7.89, KERNEL 7.90, KRNL64NUC 7.49, KRNL64UC 7.49, KRNL64UC 7.53, HDB 2.00, XS_ADVANCED_RUNTIME 1.00, SAP_EXTENDED_APP_SERVICES 1, can submit a malicious crafted request over a network to a front-end server which may, over several attempts, result in a back-end server confusing the boundaries of malicious and legitimate messages. This can result in the back-end server executing a malicious payload which can be used to read or modify information on the server or make it temporarily unavailable.

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

An unauthenticated attacker can submit malicious crafted requests to SAP Web Dispatcher (versions 7.49-7.90 and related Kernel versions), causing boundary confusion between malicious and legitimate messages on the back-end server. This can lead to arbitrary payload execution for information disclosure, modification, or temporary unavailability.

MitigationApply SAP security patches for affected Web Dispatcher and Kernel versions immediately; consider WAF rules and network segmentation as compensating controls until patching is feasible.

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
Web DispatcherApplication
Affected:= 7.49= 7.53= 7.54= 7.77= 7.81= 7.85= 7.88= 7.89= 7.90= hdb_2.00= kernel_7.49= kernel_7.53

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
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:L

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 if SAP Web Dispatcher is running
    Check for SAP Web Dispatcher processes (e.g., wd.psp, webdisp) or listening ports (typically 80, 443, 5xx00-5xx10 range). On Linux: ps -ef | grep -i webdisp; On Windows: tasklist | findstr -i webdisp
    Affected if SAP Web Dispatcher process is found running on the system
  2. Determine the installed Web Dispatcher version
    Check the SAP Web Dispatcher version via: (1) Examine the sapwebdisp.pdb or version file in the installation directory, (2) Run: sapwebdisp -v or icmversion, (3) Query the ICMADMIN page if accessible: https://hostname:port/sap/admin/info
    Affected if Installed version matches any of these: 7.49, 7.53, 7.54, 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, 7.88, 7.89, 7.90, hdb_2.00, kernel_7.49, or kernel_7.53
  3. Verify if Web Dispatcher is exposed to unauthenticated network access
    Review SAP Web Dispatcher profile parameters (icm/host_name, icm/HTTP_ports, sec/lib sapcrypto config) and firewall rules to determine if the admin ports (5xx00-5xx10 range) or reverse proxy ports are accessible from untrusted networks
    Affected if Web Dispatcher ports are accessible from untrusted/unauthenticated network segments without proper access controls
  4. Check if the back-end server connection is configured
    Review the Web Dispatcher configuration files (default.pfl, profile) for defined back-end servers (ws/Server, wdisp/System_X) and determine if the message validation between dispatcher and back-end is properly enforced
    Affected if Web Dispatcher is configured as a reverse proxy to back-end SAP systems without proper message boundary validation enabled

You are affected if SAP Web Dispatcher is running AND its version matches 7.49 through 7.90 (or hdb_2.00, kernel_7.49, kernel_7.53) AND the dispatcher is network-accessible to unauthenticated attackers.

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 SAP security patches for affected Web Dispatcher and Kernel versions immediately; consider WAF rules and network segmentation as compensating controls until patching is feasible.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

SAP Web Dispatcher version > 7.90 (latest supported patch level as specified in SAP Security Note for CVE-2023-33987)

  1. Check the SAP Security Note for CVE-2023-33987 on the SAP Support Portal (launchpad.sap.com) to obtain the specific patch or kernel revision required
  2. Upgrade SAP Web Dispatcher to a version newer than 7.90 (or the latest available patched version as specified in the SAP Security Note)
  3. If using SAP Kernel, also upgrade the Kernel to a patched version as specified in the security note
  4. After upgrading, verify that the Web Dispatcher is processing HTTP requests correctly and monitor for any smuggling attempts
  5. Review and test any configuration changes related to HTTP parsing that may have been included in the patch
Caveat Review SAP release notes for the target version to check for any breaking changes or required configuration adjustments; test in a non-production environment before deploying

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

Fix this in Web Dispatcher 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
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $9,216.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-33987 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2023-33987 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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.

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