Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-46599 affects Bentley MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80. A user must open a malicious PDF or visit a malicious page, so this is not a self-propagating network issue. The known impact is limited information disclosure, but ZDI notes it could help enable code execution when chained with other vulnerabilities.
Executive priority
Handle through normal vulnerability management unless MicroStation users regularly process untrusted design files or PDFs. The business risk is lower than internet-facing remote execution, but engineering and design teams may still face targeted document-borne exposure.
Technical view
The flaw is an out-of-bounds read in MicroStation CONNECT PDF parsing caused by insufficient validation of user-supplied data. It maps to CWE-125 and has CVSS 3.0 score 3.3 with local attack vector and required user interaction. The provided sources identify version 10.16.0.80 as affected.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely where Bentley MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80 is installed and users open external PDFs or web-delivered content. Organizations without this specific version have no source-supported exposure from the provided bundle.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. Exploitation requires user interaction and appears primarily useful as an information disclosure primitive, potentially chained with other flaws for broader compromise.
Researcher notes
Provided evidence names Bentley MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80 and PDF parsing. No exploit proof, patch version, or workaround detail is included in the prompt bundle. Avoid asserting active exploitation or broader product impact without additional vendor evidence.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory Bentley MicroStation CONNECT installations and identify version 10.16.0.80.
- Check Bentley BE-2021-0003 for the vendor-approved fixed version or workaround.
- Restrict opening untrusted PDFs in MicroStation until remediation is complete.
- Use email and web filtering to reduce delivery of malicious files or pages.
- Run MicroStation with least-privilege user accounts where operationally feasible.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether MicroStation CONNECT 10.16.0.80 exists in software inventory.
- Record remediation status against Bentley advisory BE-2021-0003.
- Verify users handling external PDFs have compensating controls in place.
- Check vulnerability scanner results for CVE-2021-46599 coverage.
- Review endpoint alerts for suspicious document-handling activity, without assuming exploitation.
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-2021-46599 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-2021-0003CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-22-186/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.