Evidence used
- No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
- EPSS is 1.06% for the current model date.
BlackTreeCVE IntelligenceFull vulnerability report · 2020
CVE-2020-5657High confidence
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation MELSEC iQ-R series — Improper Neutralization of Argument Delimiters in a Command ('Argument Injection')
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation · MELSEC iQ-R series
6.5MediumCVSS 3.1
Scheduled
Fix not verifiedMedium technical severity with no CISA KEV confirmation; remediate through the normal risk-based patch cycle unless local exposure raises the priority.
R
Open reassessment dashboard →Operational reassessment
Published severity in operational context
Published severityMedium→Operational priority:Medium, unchanged from published severity.unchanged
Compensating controls
- Restrict local access and enforce least privilege on affected hosts.
- Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.
Verification
- Confirm that the asset runs Mitsubishi Electric Corporation MELSEC iQ-R series and falls inside the recorded affected range.
- Recheck the vendor advisory before scheduling a change because no verified fixed version is currently retained.
- Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
- Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Medium technical severity with no CISA KEV confirmation; remediate through the normal risk-based patch cycle unless local exposure raises the priority.
Fix not verified01
What, why and how
Improper neutralization of argument delimiters in a command ('Argument Injection') vulnerability in TCP/IP function included in the firmware of MELSEC iQ-R series (RJ71EIP91 EtherNet/IP Network Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '02' or before, RJ71PN92 PROFINET IO Controller Module First 2 digits of serial number are '01' or before, RD81DL96 High Speed Data Logger Module First 2 digits of serial number are '08' or before, RD81MES96N MES Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before, and RD81OPC96 OPC UA Server Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before) allows unauthenticated attackers on adjacent network to stop the network functions of the products via a specially crafted packet.
What
Improper neutralization of argument delimiters in a command ('Argument Injection') vulnerability in TCP/IP function included in the firmware of MELSEC iQ-R series (RJ71EIP91 EtherNet/IP Network Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '02' or before, RJ71PN92 PROFINET IO Controller Module First 2 digits of serial number are '01' or before, RD81DL96 High Speed Data Logger Module First 2 digits of serial number are '08' or before, RD81MES96N MES Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before, and RD81OPC96 OPC UA Server Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before) allows unauthenticated attackers on adjacent network to stop the network functions of the products via a specially crafted packet.
Why
The product constructs a string for a command to be executed by a separate component in another control sphere, but it does not properly delimit the intended arguments, options, or switches within that command string.
How
An attacker operating through the affected interface 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
Improper neutralization of argument delimiters in a command ('Argument Injection') vulnerability in TCP/IP function included in the firmware of MELSEC iQ-R series (RJ71EIP91 EtherNet/IP Network Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '02' or before, RJ71PN92 PROFINET IO Controller Module First 2 digits of serial number are '01' or before, RD81DL96 High Speed Data Logger Module First 2 digits of serial number are '08' or before, RD81MES96N MES Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before, and RD81OPC96 OPC UA Server Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before) allows unauthenticated attackers on adjacent network to stop the network functions of the products via a specially crafted packet.
Why
The product constructs a string for a command to be executed by a separate component in another control sphere, but it does not properly delimit the intended arguments, options, or switches within that command string.
How
An attacker operating through the affected interface 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 No confirmed evidence
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.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 None recorded
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.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
- the affected interface → Improper Neutralization of Argument Delimiters in a Command ('Argument Injection') → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
- Attack surface
- Unspecified
- 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-88 ↗
CWE-88: Improper Neutralization of Argument Delimiters in a Command ('Argument Injection'). The product constructs a string for a command to be executed by a separate component in another control sphere, but it does not properly delimit the intended arguments, options, or switches within that command string.
- CVSS vector
?
CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity. CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HCommon Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.
AVAdjacentAttack vector: The attacker must be on an adjacent or logically close 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.CNoneConfidentiality impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.INoneIntegrity impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.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.
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. - Fix not verified
- Affected
- MELSEC iQ-R series: RJ71EIP91 EtherNet/IP Network Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '02' or before, RJ71PN92 PROFINET IO Controller Module First 2 digits of serial number are '01' or before, RD81DL96 High Speed Data Logger Module First 2 digits of serial number are '08' or before, RD81MES96N MES Interface Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before, and RD81OPC96 OPC UA Server Module First 2 digits of serial number are '04' or before
- Fixed
- No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
- Action
- No verified patch reference is present in the current structured sources. Check the vendor advisory before making a change.
- Workaround
- No verified workaround is recorded. Limit untrusted access and use least privilege until authoritative guidance is available.
04
Evidence and provenance
Published 30 Oct 2020 · Last source change 4 Aug 2024, 08:39 UTC · CWE-88 · Improper Neutralization of Argument Delimiters in a Command ('Argument Injection')
CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceNIST NVD
EPSS source FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
?
The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2020-26818
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceNIST NVD
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment
Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.
Material change intelligence
View recent updates ↗What changed after publication
No material field changes have been recorded since change tracking began. Routine source refreshes and cosmetic edits are intentionally excluded.
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.