# CVE-2019-10918: Privilege escalation in SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier

> Authenticated attackers can execute arbitrary commands with SYSTEM privileges via the DCOM interface in Siemens SCADA systems.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 14 May 2019
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-vw33-cr89-4v6m

## What is CVE-2019-10918?

CVE-2019-10918 is a high-severity vulnerability in Siemens AG SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier, published on 14 May 2019. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability has been identified in SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier (All versions), SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.1 (All versions < V8.1 with WinCC V7.3 Upd 19), SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.2 (All versions < V8.2 SP1 with WinCC V7.4 SP1 Upd11), SIMATIC PCS 7 V9.0 (All versions < V9.0 SP2 with WinCC V7.4 SP1 Upd11), SIMATIC WinCC (TIA Portal) V13 (All versions), SIMATIC WinCC (TIA Portal) V14 (All versions < V14 SP1 Upd 9), SIMATIC WinCC (TIA Portal) V15 (All versions < V15.1 Upd 3), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Professional V13 (All versions), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Professional V14 (All versions < V14.1 Upd 8), SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Professional V15 (All versions < V15.1 Upd 3), SIMATIC WinCC V7.2 and earlier (All versions), SIMATIC WinCC V7.3 (All versions < V7.3 Upd 19), SIMATIC WinCC V7.4 (All versions < V7.4 SP1 Upd 11), SIMATIC WinCC V7.5 (All versions < V7.5 Upd 3). An authenticatd attacker with network access to the DCOM interface could execute arbitrary commands with SYSTEM privileges. The vulnerability could be exploited by an attacker with network access to the affected system. Successful exploitation requires authentication with a low-privileged user account and no user interaction. An attacker could use the vulnerability to compromise confidentiality and integrity and availability of the affected system. At the time of advisory publication no public exploitation of this security vulnerability was known.

Weakness: CWE-749 (Exposed Dangerous Method or Function)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2019-10918?

It affects 4 products.


Products: Siemens Simatic Pcs 7, Siemens Simatic Wincc, Siemens Simatic Wincc \(Tia Portal\), Siemens Simatic Wincc Runtime Professional.

## How do I fix CVE-2019-10918?

No fix has been published for CVE-2019-10918 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2019-10918 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-10918 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Siemens AG SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier

- [CVE-2023-25910](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-25910/): Code injection in SIMATIC PCS 7 (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2021-40358](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40358/): Path traversal in SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.2 (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2019-10922](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-10922/): Auth bypass in SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2021-40360](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40360/): Information disclosure in SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.2 (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2019-10916](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-10916/): SQL injection in SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier (high 8.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2019-10918 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2019-10918 is a high-severity vulnerability in Siemens AG SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier, published on 14 May 2019. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-10918 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Siemens AG SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and earlier. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-10918/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-10918/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-10918
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-10918
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2019-10918

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-10918/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.