Siemens Engineering Platforms

As of January 10, 2023, CISA will no longer be updating ICS security advisories for Siemens product vulnerabilities beyond the initial advisory. For the most up-to-date information on vulnerabilities in this advisory, please see Siemens’ ProductCERT Security Advisories (CERT Services | Services | Siemens Global). View CSAF

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY CVSS v3 8.2 ATTENTION: Low Attack Complexity Vendor: Siemens Equipment: Engineering Platforms Vulnerability: Deserialization of Untrusted Data
2. RISK EVALUATION Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow a local authenticated attacker to cause a type confusion and execute arbitrary code within the affected application and its privileges.
3. TECHNICAL DETAILS 3.1 AFFECTED PRODUCTS Siemens reports that the following products are affected: Siemens SIMATIC PCS neo V4.1: All Versions Siemens SIMATIC WinCC V18: All Versions Siemens SIMATIC WinCC V19: All versions prior to V19 Update 4 Siemens SIMATIC WinCC V20: All Versions Siemens SIMOCODE ES V17: All Versions Siemens SIMOCODE ES V18: All Versions Siemens SIMOCODE ES V19: All Versions Siemens SIMOCODE ES V20: All Versions Siemens SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.4: All Versions Siemens SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.5: All Versions Siemens SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.6: All versions prior to V5.6 SP1 HF7 Siemens SIMATIC PCS neo V5.0: All Versions Siemens SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.7: All Versions Siemens SINAMICS Startdrive V17: All Versions Siemens SINAMICS Startdrive V18: All Versions Siemens SINAMICS Startdrive V19: All Versions Siemens SINAMICS Startdrive V20: All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Safety ES V17 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Safety ES V18 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Safety ES V19 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Safety ES V20 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V17 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens SIMATIC PCS neo V6.0: All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V18 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V19 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V20 (TIA Portal): All Versions Siemens TIA Portal Cloud V17: All Versions Siemens TIA Portal Cloud V18: All Versions Siemens TIA Portal Cloud V19: All versions prior to 5.2.1.1 Siemens TIA Portal Cloud V20: All Versions Siemens TIA Portal Test Suite V20: All Versions Siemens SIMATIC S7-PLCSIM V17: All Versions Siemens SIMATIC STEP 7 V17: All Versions Siemens SIMATIC STEP 7 V18: All Versions Siemens SIMATIC STEP 7 V19: All versions prior to V19 Update 4 Siemens SIMATIC STEP 7 V20: All Versions Siemens SIMATIC WinCC V17: All Versions 3.2 VULNERABILITY OVERVIEW 3.2.1 DESERIALIZATION OF UNTRUSTED DATA CWE-502 Affected products do not properly sanitize Interprocess Communication input received through a Windows Named Pipe accessible to all local users. This could allow an authenticated local attacker to cause a type confusion and execute arbitrary code within the affected application. CVE-2024-54678 has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.2 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H). 3.3 BACKGROUND CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE SECTORS: Critical Manufacturing COUNTRIES/AREAS DEPLOYED: Worldwide COMPANY HEADQUARTERS LOCATION: Germany 3.4 RESEARCHER Siemens reported this vulnerability to CISA.
4. MITIGATIONS Siemens has identified the following specific workarounds and mitigations users can apply to reduce risk: All affected products on Desktop systems: Execute affected software on Windows hosts where only a single user is configured All affected products on Server systems: Reduce the access on operating system level to administrators only SIMATIC PCS neo V4.1, SIMATIC S7-PLCSIM V17: Currently no fix is planned SIMATIC PCS neo V5.0, SIMATIC PCS neo V6.0, SIMATIC STEP 7 V17, SIMATIC STEP 7 V18, SIMATIC STEP 7 V20, SIMATIC WinCC V17, SIMATIC WinCC V18, SIMATIC WinCC V20, SIMOCODE ES V17, SIMOCODE ES V18, SIMOCODE ES V19, SIMOCODE ES V20, SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.4, SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.5, SIMOTION SCOUT TIA V5.7, SINAMICS Startdrive V17, SINAMICS Startdrive V18, SINAMICS Startdrive V19, SINAMICS Startdrive V20, SIRIUS Safety ES V17 (TIA Portal), SIRIUS Safety ES V18 (TIA Portal), SIRIUS Safety ES V19 (TIA Portal), SIRIUS Safety ES V20 (TIA Portal), SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V17 (TIA Portal), SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V18 (TIA Portal), SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V19 (TIA Portal), SIRIUS Soft Starter ES V20 (TIA Portal), TIA Portal Cloud V17, TIA Portal Cloud V18, TIA Portal Cloud V20, TIA Portal Test Suite V20: Currently no fix is available As a general security measure, Siemens recommends protecting network access to devices with appropriate mechanisms. To operate the devices in a protected IT environment, Siemens recommends configuring the environment according to Siemens’ operational guidelines for industrial security and following recommendations in the product manuals. Additional information on industrial security by Siemens can be found on the Siemens industrial security webpage For more information see the associated Siemens security advisory SSA-693808 in HTML and CSAF. CISA recommends users take defensive measures to minimize the risk of exploitation of this vulnerability, such as: Minimize network exposure for all control system devices and/or systems, ensuring they are not accessible from the internet. Locate control system networks and remote devices behind firewalls and isolating them from business networks. When remote access is required, use more secure methods, such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). Recognize VPNs may have vulnerabilities, should be updated to the most recent version available, and are only as secure as the connected devices. CISA reminds organizations to perform proper impact analysis and risk assessment prior to deploying defensive measures. CISA also provides a section for control systems security recommended practices on the ICS webpage on cisa.gov. Several CISA products detailing cyber defense best practices are available for reading and download, including Improving Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity with Defense-in-Depth Strategies. CISA encourages organizations to implement recommended cybersecurity strategies for proactive defense of ICS assets. Additional mitigation guidance and recommended practices are publicly available on the ICS webpage at cisa.gov in the technical information paper, ICS-TIP-12-146-01B–Targeted Cyber Intrusion Detection and Mitigation Strategies. Organizations observing suspected malicious activity should follow established internal procedures and report findings to CISA for tracking and correlation against other incidents. CISA also recommends users take the following measures to protect themselves from social engineering attacks: Do not click web links or open attachments in unsolicited email messages. Refer to Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams for more information on avoiding email scams. Refer to Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks for more information on social engineering attacks. No known public exploitation specifically targeting this vulnerability has been reported to CISA at this time. This vulnerability is not exploitable remotely.
5. UPDATE HISTORY August 14, 2025: Initial Republication of Siemens ProductCERT SSA-693808