CVE-2023-38356
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 · uneditedMiniTool Power Data Recovery 11.6 contains an insecure installation process that allows attackers to achieve remote code execution through a man in the middle attack.
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 · moderate confidenceMiniTool Power Data Recovery 11.6 uses an insecure installation process that downloads components over unencrypted channels (likely HTTP). During installation, a man-in-the-middle attacker can intercept network traffic and inject malicious code into the download stream, resulting in arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the installer on the victim's machine.
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= 11.6CVSS 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
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/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 installed MiniTool Power Data Recovery versionOpen Windows Settings > Apps & Features, or use Command Prompt: 'wmic product get name,version' or check the program directory for version information. Look for MiniTool Power Data Recovery in the installed programs list.Affected if The installed version is exactly 11.6 - this indicates the vulnerable installer was or could be used.
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Locate the installer executableSearch the system for the original installer file (commonly named like 'PowerDataRecovery.exe' or similar) in download folders, installer archives, or the vendor's original download location.Affected if The installer file exists and its version metadata shows 11.6, confirming the vulnerable installer package is present.
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Review installation logs or temp foldersCheck user temp folders (%temp%) or application data folders for installer remnants, download history, or installation logs that may indicate if HTTP was used during the original install.Affected if Logs or artifacts show the installer retrieved components over HTTP rather than HTTPS.
If MiniTool Power Data Recovery version 11.6 is installed or the version 11.6 installer is present on the system, the environment has access to the vulnerable installer component that uses unencrypted channels.
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 dataThe vendor should update the installer to use HTTPS for all network communications and implement cryptographic verification (e.g., code signing hashes) of downloaded components before execution. Users should avoid installing the software on untrusted networks until a patched version is released.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-38356 — 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-2023-38356 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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- 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