CVE-2023-27856
Path Traversal in Rockwellautomation Thinmanager 6.0.0 – 10.0.2
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:NSummary
CVE-2023-27856 is a high-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Rockwellautomation Thinmanager. Its CVSS base score is 7.5 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked in the top 0.5% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
In Rockwell Automation's ThinManager ThinServer, a path traversal vulnerability exists when processing a message of type 8. The flaw resides in the ThinServer.exe component and is tracked as CWE-22, carrying a CVSS 3.1 score of 7.5 that reflects network attackability without authentication or user interaction.
An unauthenticated remote attacker can send a crafted message of type 8 to retrieve arbitrary files from the disk drive on which ThinServer.exe is installed, exposing sensitive data with high confidentiality impact.
Vendor advisories published at https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/answer_view/a_id/1138640 provide official guidance on the issue. The associated EPSS score rose from lower values to a peak of 0.5473 before receding to the current 0.4820.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-31591
Vulnerability Data
In affected versions, path traversal exists when processing a message of type 8 in Rockwell Automation's ThinManager ThinServer. An unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit this vulnerability to download arbitrary files on the disk drive where ThinServer.exe is installed.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V5.3.2
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Validates pathnames and filenames to prevent traversal outside intended directories.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Patching/maintenance can remediate known path-traversal flaws in deployed software (partial prevention of exploitability) but does nothing to stop the coding defect from being introduced in the first place.
PR.AA-05 defines and reviews access policies but does not address code-level pathname neutralization, so neither direction prevents CWE-22.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Security testing in development catches path traversal via static/dynamic analysis.
Secure SDLC mandates input validation and path sanitization that directly prevent path traversal.
Application security requirements include rules for safe file handling and canonicalization.
Secure architecture principles require least-privilege file access and directory isolation.
Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe path construction and mandate safe APIs.
Information access restriction limits which files an application may read or write.