CVE-2023-4551
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 · uneditedImproper Input Validation vulnerability in OpenText AppBuilder on Windows, Linux allows OS Command Injection. The AppBuilder's Scheduler functionality that facilitates creation of scheduled tasks is vulnerable to command injection. This allows authenticated users to inject arbitrary operating system commands into the executing process. This issue affects AppBuilder: from 21.2 before 23.2.
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 confidenceImproper input validation in OpenText AppBuilder's Scheduler functionality allows authenticated users to inject arbitrary OS commands during scheduled task creation. The vulnerability exists in versions 21.2 through 23.1 (before 23.2) on Windows and Linux platforms, enabling command injection through unsanitized input fields in the task scheduler.
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>= 21.2, < 23.2CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 AppBuilder installationLocate the OpenText AppBuilder installation directory or check system inventory for the AppBuilder applicationAffected if OpenText AppBuilder is installed on the system
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Determine installed versionCheck the AppBuilder version information (typically found in the application metadata, about dialog, or version file within the installation directory)Affected if The installed version is 21.2 or higher but lower than 23.2
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Verify Scheduler is accessibleConfirm the Scheduler module is enabled and accessible within the AppBuilder interface - check user role permissions and configuration settings for the Scheduler functionalityAffected if Scheduler functionality is enabled and available to authenticated users
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Review scheduled tasks for anomaliesInspect existing scheduled tasks created through AppBuilder for suspicious command patterns, unexpected executables, or unusual scheduling parametersAffected if Scheduled tasks contain unexpected commands, scripts, or parameters that were not intentionally created by administrators
If OpenText AppBuilder version is 21.2 or higher but lower than 23.2 AND the Scheduler module is enabled and accessible to users, the environment is affected by this vulnerability.
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.
dbcve · scoped23.2
Upgrade AppBuilder to version 23.2 or later to obtain the vendor patch. Until patched, restrict access to the Scheduler functionality to minimal required users and monitor for suspicious scheduled task creation.
AppBuilder 23.2 or later
- Identify the currently installed AppBuilder version to confirm it falls within the affected range (>= 21.2, < 23.2)
- Back up the current AppBuilder installation, configuration files, and any critical data
- Download AppBuilder version 23.2 or later from the OpenText support portal (support.opentext.com)
- Install the upgrade following OpenText's standard upgrade procedures for AppBuilder
- After upgrading, verify the Scheduler functionality has been updated and no longer allows command injection
- Test the fix by attempting to create a scheduled task with special characters to confirm input validation is properly enforced
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing10.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-4551 — 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-2023-4551 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
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