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Full vulnerability report · 2020
CVE-2020-14517High confidence

n/a CodeMeter — Inadequate Encryption Strength

n/a · CodeMeter

9.8CriticalCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 72 hours

Critical technical impact with a remotely reachable, unauthenticated path; no CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.

Patch available
Direct vendor intelligence

Authoritative vendor CSAF and VEX advisories

Structured product status and remediation from the issuing vendor. Product-state explanations are always visible; large lists can be searched or downloaded.

2 current
SSA-455843 · CSAF 2.0 · revision 8 · finalSiemens ProductCERTSSA-455843: WIBU Systems CodeMeter Runtime Vulnerabilities in Siemens Products
8 known affected

The vendor explicitly identifies these products as affected by this CVE.

  • PSS CAPE Protection Simulation Platform
  • SICAM 230
  • SIMATIC Information Server 2019
  • SIMATIC PCS neo
  • SIMATIC Process Historian 2019 (incl. Process Historian OPC UA Server)
  • SIMATIC WinCC OA
  • SIMIT Simulation Platform
  • SINEC INS
Summary
Protocol encryption can be easily broken and the server accepts external connections, which may allow an attacker to remotely communicate with the CodeMeter API.
Remediation
CAPE 14 installations installed from material dated 2020-09-15 or later are not affected, as they contain a fixed version of CodeMeter Runtime
SEVD-2020-287-02 · CSAF 2.0 · revision 1.1.0 · finalSchneider Electric CPCERTWibu-Systems CodeMeter Vulnerabilities
5 known affected

The vendor explicitly identifies these products as affected by this CVE.

  • Schneider Electric EcoStruxure Machine Expert (formerly known as SoMachine and SoMachine Motion) All versions
  • Schneider Electric E+PLC400 All versions
  • Schneider Electric E+PLC100 All versions
  • Schneider Electric E+PLC_Setup All versions
  • Schneider Electric EcoStruxure Machine SCADA Expert All versions
Summary
Protocol encryption can be easily broken for CodeMeter (All versions prior to 6.90 are affected, including Version 6.90 or newer only if CodeMeter Runtime is running as server) and the server accepts external connections, which may allow an attacker to remotely communicate with the CodeMeter API.
Remediation
Schneider Electric is currently establishing a remediation plan for all future versions of products impacted which do not have a fix available yet. We will update this document when the remediation is available. Until then, customers should note that the CodeMeter installation is independent from the affected products reported in this security notification and should immediately apply the following mitigations to reduce the risk of exploit: Manually update CodeMeter to version 7.10a. This version is already available for download at https://www.wibu.com/support/user Additional Mitigations • Import license files from trusted sources only. • Set up network segmentation and configure firewalls to block all unauthorized access to port 22350/TCP. To ensure you are informed of all updates to this notification subscribe to Schneider Electric’s security notification service here: https://www.se.com/en/work/support/cybersecurity/security-notifications.jsp
Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Select the national-authority views to include. The exact source language is shown on each matched advisory. Your choice is remembered on this device and encoded in the shareable URL.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2020-6653

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

ENISA has published the identifier mapping but no EUVD description has been stored yet.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
Not supplied in the stored EUVD record
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 72 hours

Critical technical impact with a remotely reachable, unauthenticated path; no CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.

Patch available
01

What, why and how

Protocol encryption can be easily broken for CodeMeter (All versions prior to 6.90 are affected, including Version 6.90 or newer only if CodeMeter Runtime is running as server) and the server accepts external connections, which may allow an attacker to remotely communicate with the CodeMeter API.

What

Protocol encryption can be easily broken for CodeMeter (All versions prior to 6.90 are affected, including Version 6.90 or newer only if CodeMeter Runtime is running as server) and the server accepts external connections, which may allow an attacker to remotely communicate with the CodeMeter API.

Why

The product stores or transmits sensitive data using an encryption scheme that is theoretically sound, but is not strong enough for the level of protection required.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

What

Protocol encryption can be easily broken for CodeMeter (All versions prior to 6.90 are affected, including Version 6.90 or newer only if CodeMeter Runtime is running as server) and the server accepts external connections, which may allow an attacker to remotely communicate with the CodeMeter API.

Why

The product stores or transmits sensitive data using an encryption scheme that is theoretically sound, but is not strong enough for the level of protection required.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
a network path → Inadequate Encryption Strength → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-326 ↗

CWE-326: Inadequate Encryption Strength. The product stores or transmits sensitive data using an encryption scheme that is theoretically sound, but is not strong enough for the level of protection required.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.AHighAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
No specific living-off-the-land technique is confirmed in the structured sources. Monitor normal administration tools for activity inconsistent with the affected service's baseline.
NetworkUnauthenticatedCWE-326
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

Cyber Security Agency of Singapore · English · CSA-SB-20200923Security Bulletin 23 Sep 2020

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore included this CVE in its official Security Bulletin 23 Sep 2020, published on 23 September 2020. Open the linked bulletin for the product, severity and reference information published in that issue.

Official advisory ↗
CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2020-AVI-643Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits Schneider Electric

De multiples vulnérabilités ont été découvertes dans les produits Schneider Electric. Elles permettent à un attaquant de provoquer une exécution de code arbitraire à distance, un déni de service, un contournement de la politique de sécurité, une atteinte à l'intégrité des données, une atteinte à la confidentialité des données.

Official advisory ↗
CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2020-AVI-550Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits Siemens

De multiples vulnérabilités ont été découvertes dans les produits Siemens. Certaines d'entre elles permettent à un attaquant de provoquer une exécution de code arbitraire à distance, un contournement de la politique de sécurité et une atteinte à la confidentialité des données.

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2020-011222CodeMeter における暗号強度に関する脆弱性

CodeMeter には、暗号強度に関する脆弱性が存在します。

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Patch available
Affected
Fixed
No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
Action
CAPE 14 installations installed from material dated 2020-09-15 or later are not affected, as they contain a fixed version of CodeMeter Runtime
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 16 Sept 2020 · Last source change 4 Aug 2024, 12:46 UTC · CWE-326 · Inadequate Encryption Strength

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceNIST NVD
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2020-6653
Product sourceVendor CSAF · Siemens ProductCERT
Remediation sourceVendor CSAF · Siemens ProductCERT
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗

No material field changes have been recorded since change tracking began. Routine source refreshes and cosmetic edits are intentionally excluded.

Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
CVE published
ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2020-6653↗Vendor CSAF · Siemens ProductCERT↗CVE authority or vendor reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2020-14517 · cve.blacktree.nl