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ArenaApplication · Rockwellautomation

CVE-2024-2929

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-03-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 16.20.03 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 memory corruption vulnerability in Rockwell Automation Arena Simulation software could potentially allow a malicious user to insert unauthorized code to the software by corrupting the memory triggering an access violation. Once inside, the threat actor can run harmful code on the system. This affects the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the product. To trigger this, the user would unwittingly need to open a malicious file shared by the threat actor.

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

Memory corruption vulnerability in Rockwell Automation Arena Simulation software allows code execution via a malicious file. When a user opens a crafted malicious file, memory corruption triggers an access violation that can be leveraged to run unauthorized code on the affected system.

MitigationApply vendor patches from Rockwell Automation when available. Until then, exercise extreme caution with file attachments from untrusted sources and consider network segmentation to limit exposure.

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
ArenaApplication
Affected:>= 16.00.00, < 16.20.03

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. Check if Rockwell Automation Arena is installed
    Look for the Arena executable (typically named arena.exe) in common installation directories such as C:\Program Files\Rockwell Automation\Arena or C:\Program Files (x86)\Rockwell Automation\Arena. Alternatively, check the Windows Programs and Features list for 'Rockwell Automation Arena'.
    Affected if Arena Simulation software is present on the system
  2. Determine the installed Arena version
    Right-click on the arena.exe file, select Properties, and view the 'File version' or 'Product version' field in the Details tab. Alternatively, run 'wmic product where "name like '%Arena%'" get version' if available.
    Affected if Unable to determine the version number
  3. Compare version against affected range
    Take the installed version number and compare it to the affected range: versions 16.00.00 through 16.20.02 are vulnerable. Versions below 16.00.00 or at/above 16.20.03 are not affected.
    Affected if Installed version is 16.00.00 or higher but lower than 16.20.03
  4. Identify if user interaction vector exists
    Check whether users have the ability to open external or received files directly within the Arena application. This vulnerability is triggered when a user opens a crafted malicious .arenaskin or related file.
    Affected if Users can import or open files from untrusted sources into Arena

The environment is affected if Rockwell Automation Arena is installed with a version greater than or equal to 16.00.00 but less than 16.20.03, and users can open external files with the software.

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 16.20.03 or later
Fixed in 16.20.03
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor patches from Rockwell Automation when available. Until then, exercise extreme caution with file attachments from untrusted sources and consider network segmentation to limit exposure.

Recommended fix High confidence

Arena version 16.20.03 or later

  1. 1. Verify the current installed version of Arena Simulation software by checking 'Help' > 'About Arena' or the installed programs list.
  2. 2. Back up any existing Arena models (.aren files) and related data files before proceeding with the upgrade.
  3. 3. Uninstall the current version of Arena Simulation software through the system's Add/Remove Programs or Apps & Features control panel.
  4. 4. Download the fixed version (Arena 16.20.03 or later) from the official Rockwell Automation website or authorized distribution channel.
  5. 5. Install the new version by running the downloaded installer and following the on-screen installation prompts.
  6. 6. Once installation completes, verify the installed version shows 16.20.03 or higher under 'Help' > 'About Arena'.
  7. 7. Re-open any previously created model files to confirm they load correctly in the updated software.
Caveat Review release notes for any changes to simulation features or model file compatibility with previous versions

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

Fix this in Arena Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
13.0 hours of engineering $2,280
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,648.

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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-2024-2929 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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