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Denial of Service Vulnerability in Automation License Manager (ALM) Before V5.2

Plan Patch8.6SSA-783261Dec 12, 2012
Attack VectorNetwork
Auth RequiredNone
ComplexityLow
User InteractionNone needed
Summary

A denial of service vulnerability exists in Automation License Manager versions 4.0 through 5.1. An attacker can send specially crafted packets to port 4410/tcp to crash the license service, preventing legitimate users from obtaining or renewing software licenses for Siemens automation tools.

What this means
What could happen
An attacker could crash the Automation License Manager service, preventing legitimate users and engineering workstations from obtaining or renewing software licenses for Siemens automation tools, which would block engineering activities and potentially prevent system startups that depend on valid licenses.
Who's at risk
This affects organizations running Siemens Automation License Manager versions 4.0 through 5.1, including engineering departments that depend on this license server to authorize TIA Portal, PLCsim, and other Siemens automation tools. Any facility where engineering workstations check out licenses from this server is at risk of losing access to development and commissioning tools.
How it could be exploited
An attacker sends specially crafted network packets to port 4410/tcp on a system running Automation License Manager. The vulnerable service processes these packets without proper validation, causing it to crash or become unresponsive, denying service to all users attempting to license or use Siemens automation software.
Prerequisites
  • Network access to port 4410/tcp on the Automation License Manager server
  • No authentication required
remotely exploitableno authentication requiredlow complexityaffects engineering operations
Exploitability
Low exploit probability (EPSS 0.1%)
Affected products (1)
ProductAffected VersionsFix Status
Automation License Manager≥ 4.0, < 5.25.2
Remediation & Mitigation
0/1
Schedule — requires maintenance window
0/1

Patching may require device reboot — plan for process interruption

HOTFIXUpdate Automation License Manager to version 5.2 or later
View full Siemens ProductCERT advisory
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