Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Affected Siemens SIMATIC PLCs may disclose credentials when protection-level 2 is configured. The main business concern is unauthorized access to sensitive control-system credentials, especially where engineering networks or Profibus segments are reachable beyond trusted operators.
Executive priority
Treat as a moderate-priority OT exposure issue. Prioritize sites where PLC networks are reachable from broader enterprise networks or where credential disclosure could enable unsafe operational changes.
Technical view
CVE-2016-9159 is a CWE-200 information exposure issue affecting listed SIMATIC S7-300, S7-400, S7-410, ET200-related, and SIPLUS CPU variants. An unauthenticated attacker with access to TCP/102 ISO-TSAP or Profibus could obtain PLC credentials when protection-level 2 is enabled.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in industrial environments using affected Siemens PLC families with protection-level 2 configured and reachable TCP/102 or Profibus access paths.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not cite active exploitation, and KEV status is false. Exploitation requires access to the PLC network path or Profibus plus the vulnerable configuration, with CVSS marking attack complexity high.
Researcher notes
The source bundle names broad affected product families and all versions, but does not provide patch details. Analysis should stay focused on exposure validation, protection-level 2 configuration, TCP/102 reachability, and Profibus access.
Mitigation direction
- Review Siemens SSA-731239 and CISA ICSA-16-348-05 for vendor guidance.
- Restrict TCP/102 access to authorized engineering systems only.
- Limit physical and logical access to Profibus segments.
- Identify PLCs using protection-level 2 and assess operational necessity.
- Monitor for unexpected engineering access to affected PLC networks.
Validation and detection
- Inventory affected SIMATIC S7-300, S7-400, S7-410, ET200, and SIPLUS CPUs.
- Confirm whether protection-level 2 is configured on each PLC.
- Map which systems can reach TCP/102 on PLC networks.
- Review Profibus access paths and physical control points.
- Check vendor advisories for any product-specific remediation details.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-200: Information exposure and cloud metadata lookup
Information exposure and SSRF weaknesses can make discovery, cloud metadata, and credential material review relevant. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2016-9159 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 5.9 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N2.23.6CISA-ADPVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
5.9MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/advisories/ICSA-16-348-05CVE reference, siemens · x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.siemens.com/cert/pool/cert/siemens_security_advisory_ssa-731239.pdfCVE reference, siemens · x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/pdf/ssa-731239.pdfCVE reference, siemens · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor
Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.