What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-2638?

CVE-2023-2638 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 5.0 (Medium). CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.2%.

Factorytalk System Services CVE-2023-2638

MEDIUM

Improper Authentication (CWE-287)

2023-06-13 PSIRT@rockwellautomation.com

Authentication Bypass Rockwell Factorytalk Policy Manager Factorytalk System Services Rockwellautomation

5.0

CVSS 3.1 · NVD

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Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness	CWE CWE-287 OWASP Top 10:2025 A07:2025 - Authentication Failures ASVS 5.0 V6 - Authentication Authentication mechanism validation MITRE ATT&CK 2 techniques across 2 tactics: Defense Evasion, Initial Access The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. Sign in to read
Impact	CVSS score of 5.0 (MEDIUM). Attack characteristics: local attack vector, low complexity, low privileges required, user interaction required.
Exploit ScenarioDerived	A local attacker with access to the system could bypass authentication mechanisms to gain unauthorized access.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).

No patch listed yet 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAI

Rockwell Automation's FactoryTalk System Services does not verify that a backup configuration archive is password protected. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.0), this vulnerability is low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.

RemediationAI

No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Implement multi-factor authentication, enforce strong password policies, use proven authentication frameworks.

Affects your stack

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Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as Improper Authentication (CWE-287), which allows attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms to gain unauthorized access. Rockwell Automation's FactoryTalk System Services does not verify that a backup configuration archive is password protected. Improper authorization in FTSSBackupRestore.exe may lead to the loading of malicious configuration archives. This vulnerability may allow a local, authenticated non-admin user to craft a malicious backup archive, without password protection, that will be loaded by FactoryTalk System Services as a valid backup when a restore procedure takes places. User interaction is required for this vulnerability to be successfully exploited. Affected products include: Rockwellautomation Factorytalk Policy Manager, Rockwellautomation Factorytalk System Services.

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Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 5.0 MEDIUM

AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector

Local

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

Low

User Interaction

Required

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

None

Integrity

High

Availability

None

DescriptionNVD

Rockwell Automation's FactoryTalk System Services does not verify that a backup configuration archive is password protected.

Improper authorization in FTSSBackupRestore.exe may lead to the loading of malicious configuration archives. This vulnerability may allow a local, authenticated non-admin user to craft a malicious backup archive, without password protection, that will be loaded by FactoryTalk System Services as a valid backup when a restore procedure takes places. User interaction is required for this vulnerability to be successfully exploited.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score

0.2%

Top 90% exploitable

Data Quality

2 sources

Confidence: Low

NVD

CVE.org

EPSS

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue

Severity MEDIUM

CISA KEV No

Public POC No

EPSS 0.2%

Patch available No

Active threat No

Deciding rule

MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)

What every action level means

Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.

Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.

Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.