dbcve.org
UnicaApplication · Hcltech

CVE-2025-51735

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-11-28
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
CSV formula injection vulnerability in HCL Technologies Ltd. Unica 12.0.0.

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

This is a CSV formula injection vulnerability in HCL Unica 12.0.0. Attackers can inject spreadsheet formula characters (=, +, -, @, tab) into CSV export fields that, when opened in spreadsheet software, may trigger DDE (Dynamic Data Exchange) or formula execution, potentially leading to command execution or data exfiltration from the user's system.

MitigationImplement proper input validation and output encoding to escape or strip formula-initiating characters (=, +, -, @, tab) from all user-supplied data before including it in CSV exports, and consider adding a warning prefix (like single quote) to cells beginning with formula characters.

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
UnicaApplication
Affected:= 12.0.0

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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. Verify HCL Unica installation version
    Locate the Unica installation directory and check the version manifest, About page, or version file. Common paths include the installation root directory or within the /config folder. Use commands like 'ls' or check installer logs if available.
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 12.0.0 or falls within the 12.0.0 release line.
  2. Identify CSV export functionality
    Navigate through the Unica web interface or API documentation to locate any features that export data to CSV format. Look for export buttons, report generation features, or data download options that produce CSV files.
    Affected if CSV export functionality exists and is accessible to users.
  3. Test CSV export for formula character handling
    Create or input test data containing formula-initiating characters (=, +, -, @) and tab characters into user-controllable fields within Unica. Export the data to CSV and open the resulting file in a spreadsheet application like Excel or LibreOffice Calc.
    Affected if The exported CSV contains unescaped formula characters at the beginning of fields, which spreadsheet software will interpret as formulas upon opening.
  4. Inspect raw CSV output
    Open the exported CSV file in a plain text editor (not a spreadsheet) and examine the raw content. Look for fields that begin with =, +, -, @, or tab characters without preceding escape characters (such as a single quote prefix).
    Affected if Raw CSV shows formula-initiating characters as the first character of any field value without proper encoding or escaping.
  5. Check for DDE/formula execution prompts
    When opening the exported CSV in spreadsheet software, observe whether the application displays security warnings, enables external content, or automatically executes formulas/DDE requests.
    Affected if Spreadsheet software executes formulas or attempts DDE connections without prominent user warning, indicating successful formula injection.

A user is affected if they are running HCL Unica version 12.0.0 and the CSV export feature processes user-supplied input without escaping formula-initiating characters (=, +, -, @, tab), allowing injected formulas to execute when the CSV is opened in spreadsheet 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.

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

Implement proper input validation and output encoding to escape or strip formula-initiating characters (=, +, -, @, tab) from all user-supplied data before including it in CSV exports, and consider adding a warning prefix (like single quote) to cells beginning with formula characters.

Fix this in Unica Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
Get help mitigating

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 locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-51735 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2025-51735 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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