CVE-2016-7959

Siemens SIMATIC STEP 7 (TIA Portal) before 14 improperly stores pre-shared key data in TIA project files, which makes it easier for local users to obtain sensitive information by leveraging access to a file and conducting a brute-force attack.

Published: 2016-10-13 Last update: 2026-05-06 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2016-7959 is rated Low Risk (26.4/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.30%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2016-7959

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 0.06% 0.30% +0.23%
2 2025-03-17 0.04% 0.06% +0.02%
3 2023-03-07 — 0.04% —

Full EPSS history (4 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2016-7959

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
4.7 3.0 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
 1.0 3.6 [email protected]
1.9 2.0 LOW
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Access vector (AV:L)
Requires local access to the target system.
Access complexity (AC:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:N)
No availability impact.
 3.4 2.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2016-7959

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2016-7959

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
siemens simatic_step_7 <= 13.010 cpe:2.3:a:siemens:simatic_step_7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2016-7959

cvelogic Threat Intelligence