Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-46589 is a low-severity information disclosure issue in Bentley MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80. An attacker would need a user to open a malicious DGN file or visit a malicious page. The flaw may expose limited memory data and could support a larger exploit chain with other vulnerabilities.
Executive priority
Treat this as a targeted exposure management item, not an emergency. Prioritize teams that exchange CAD files externally, then follow Bentley guidance and reduce risky file-opening workflows.
Technical view
The issue is a CWE-125 out-of-bounds read in DGN file parsing caused by insufficient validation of user-supplied data. CVSS is 3.3 with required user interaction, no privileges, low confidentiality impact, and no integrity or availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to organizations running Bentley MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80 and handling externally supplied DGN files or CAD-related links. No other affected products or versions are identified in the supplied sources.
Exploitation context
The supplied sources do not show known active exploitation, and the CVE is not in KEV. Exploitation requires user interaction. The advisory notes possible use with other vulnerabilities for code execution, but this CVE alone is described as information disclosure.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited to CVE, Bentley, and ZDI references. The key technical issue is a DGN parser out-of-bounds read. Do not assume standalone code execution or active exploitation from the supplied data.
Mitigation direction
- Check Bentley BE-2021-0009 for current vendor remediation guidance.
- Inventory Bentley MicroStation CONNECT installations for version 10.16.0.80.
- Limit opening DGN files from untrusted or unexpected sources.
- Use email and web controls to reduce delivery of suspicious CAD files or links.
- Handle externally supplied DGN files in controlled workstations where feasible.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80 is installed in the environment.
- Review workflows that accept DGN files from customers, vendors, or public sources.
- Verify users know not to open unexpected CAD files or related links.
- Check whether vendor guidance has been applied to affected installations.
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-125: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. 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 lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-46589 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
- Low
- CVSS
- 3.3 (3.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/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.
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:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N1.81.4Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.0 score
3.3LowVector: CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://www.bentley.com/en/common-vulnerability-exposure/BE-2021-0009CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-22-176/CVE reference · 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.
Out-of-bounds Read
Out-of-bounds Read represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.