Improper Input ValidationWeakness · CWE-20

CVE-2023-50737

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-28
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
97/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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
The SE menu contains information used by Lexmark to diagnose device errors. A vulnerability in one of the SE menu routines can be leveraged by an attacker to execute arbitrary code.

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 confidence

A vulnerability exists in the Service Engineering (SE) menu routine of Lexmark devices that allows an attacker to execute arbitrary code. The SE menu contains diagnostic information intended for troubleshooting device errors, but a flaw in one of its routines can be exploited to achieve code execution.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied firmware update from Lexmark to patch the vulnerable SE menu routine. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict network access to the device management interfaces and disable the SE menu if feasible.

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/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. Confirm Lexmark device in environment
    Identify the printer or multifunction device through its web interface, console output, or physical label. Note the exact model number.
    Affected if Device is not a Lexmark product (not applicable)
  2. Check installed firmware version
    Access the device web interface (Settings > General > About) or print a configuration/ Menu Settings page to obtain the current firmware version. Compare this against the version listed in Lexmark's security advisory for CVE-2023-50737.
    Affected if Firmware version is earlier than the patched version released by Lexmark for this CVE
  3. Verify SE menu accessibility
    Access the Service Engineering (SE) menu through the device control panel (often via a specific key combination during boot) or check the web interface for SE menu or diagnostic function access. Note whether the menu is enabled or accessible without additional authentication.
    Affected if SE menu is accessible on the device (vulnerability requires SE menu to be present and accessible)
  4. Review network exposure of management interfaces
    Check firewall rules, network scans, or VLAN configurations to determine if the device web UI or other management ports are exposed to untrusted networks.
    Affected if Device management interfaces are reachable from untrusted network segments (exploitation is easier with network access)

A Lexmark device is likely affected if it runs firmware older than the patched version AND has the SE menu accessible (particularly if network-accessible), as the vulnerability resides in the SE menu routine.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied firmware update from Lexmark to patch the vulnerable SE menu routine. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict network access to the device management interfaces and disable the SE menu if feasible.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation8.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
32.0 hours of engineering $5,680
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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-50737 — 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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-50737 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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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