dbcve.org
NavisworksApplication · Autodesk

CVE-2024-12179

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-12-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2025.4 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

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
A maliciously crafted DWFX file, when parsed through Autodesk Navisworks, can be used to cause a Heap-based Overflow vulnerability. A malicious actor can leverage this vulnerability to cause a crash, read sensitive data, or execute arbitrary code in the context of the current process.

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

A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in Autodesk Navisworks when parsing maliciously crafted DWFX files. By tricking a user into opening a specially crafted DWFX file, an attacker can potentially achieve code execution in the context of the current process, or cause a crash and read sensitive data.

MitigationUntil an official patch is released by Autodesk, organizations should restrict or block the opening of untrusted DWFX files in Navisworks, and consider deploying file sandboxing or endpoint protection to mitigate risk.

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
NavisworksApplication
Affected:>= 2025, < 2025.4

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Confirm Navisworks is installed
    Check for Navisworks installation by looking for the executable (Navisworks.exe) in typical installation paths such as C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Manage 2025\ or C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Simulate 2025\, or check Add/Remove Programs for Autodesk Navisworks entries.
    Affected if Navisworks is installed on the system
  2. Identify the installed Navisworks version
    Right-click on Navisworks.exe, select Properties, then view the Details tab to see the Product version. Alternatively, open Navisworks and navigate to Help > About Autodesk Navisworks to display the version number.
    Affected if The version shown is 2025.x where x is any version prior to 2025.4 (for example, 2025.0, 2025.1, 2025.2, 2025.3)
  3. Verify DWFX file handling capability
    Attempt to open a DWFX file in Navisworks, or check if the DWFX converter/add-in is loaded. In Navisworks, go to File > Open and verify that .dwfx appears as a supported file type in the file dialog filter.
    Affected if DWFX files can be opened or the DWFX converter is available in Navisworks

You are affected if Navisworks 2025 through 2025.3.x is installed and DWFX file handling is enabled, allowing specially crafted DWFX files to trigger the heap overflow during parsing.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2025.4 or later
Fixed in 2025.4
Interim mitigation

Until an official patch is released by Autodesk, organizations should restrict or block the opening of untrusted DWFX files in Navisworks, and consider deploying file sandboxing or endpoint protection to mitigate risk.

Recommended fix High confidence

Navisworks 2025.4

  1. Verify current Navisworks installation version by opening the application and navigating to Help > About Autodesk Navisworks
  2. Download Navisworks 2025.4 or later from the official Autodesk website (www.autodesk.com)
  3. Close all instances of Navisworks and any related applications
  4. Run the installer for Navisworks 2025.4 and follow the on-screen installation prompts
  5. Restart the system after installation completes
  6. Verify the installed version by checking Help > About Autodesk Navisworks confirms version 2025.4 or later
  7. Implement user awareness training about not opening untrusted DWFX files from unknown sources as an additional security measure

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

Fix this in Navisworks Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2024-12179 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
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data