CVE-2023-52325
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 · uneditedA local file inclusion vulnerability in one of Trend Micro Apex Central's widgets could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on affected installations. Please note: this vulnerability must be used in conjunction with another one to exploit an affected system. In addition, an attacker must first obtain a valid set of credentials on target system in order to exploit this vulnerability.
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 confidenceA local file inclusion vulnerability exists in a Trend Micro Apex Central widget that allows reading local files through path traversal. When chained with another vulnerability and combined with valid credentials, an attacker can achieve arbitrary code execution on affected installations.
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= 2019CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/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 the installed Apex Central versionAccess the Apex Central console and navigate to System Settings > About, or check the installation directory for version information. Alternatively, query the registry or use the product's built-in version check command if available.Affected if The installed version is exactly 2019 (build/revision numbers may vary)
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Confirm the Apex Central widget component is enabledCheck the Apex Central administration console for active widget features. Review the web server configuration to determine if the widget rendering module is loaded and accessible.Affected if The widget functionality is enabled and accessible to the user in question
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Verify widget endpoints are exposedExamine the web server configuration (IIS/Apache) and URL routing tables for Apex Central. Look for paths related to widget handling (commonly /widget/ or similar patterns in the web application).Affected if Widget-related endpoints are accessible without additional authentication barriers beyond basic login
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Review access controls on the widget functionalityCheck user role assignments and permission configurations in Apex Central. Determine if low-privilege users or anonymous accounts can trigger widget requests.Affected if Users with limited privileges can access widget functionality or if authentication can be bypassed for widget requests
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Examine request logs for path traversal patternsReview Apex Central web logs and WAF/IDS logs for suspicious patterns such as ../../../etc/passwd or similar path traversal sequences in widget-related HTTP requests.
A user is affected if they have Apex Central version 2019 running with widget functionality enabled, as the LFI vulnerability exists in this specific configuration.
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 dataApply vendor patches when released; until then, restrict widget access to authorized personnel only and monitor for suspicious path traversal patterns in widget requests.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-52325 — 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-2023-52325 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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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.
- 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