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CVE-2023-6711 Hitachi Energy CVE debrief

A buffer overflow vulnerability in Hitachi Energy RTU500 series CMU firmware affects SCI IEC 60870-5-104 and HCI IEC 60870-5-104 protocol implementations. Specially crafted network messages are not properly validated, which can trigger a buffer overflow and cause the RTU500 CMU to reboot. This results in a denial-of-service condition with availability impact. The vulnerability was published on December 19, 2024, with a CVSS 3.1 score of 5.9 (Medium severity). Eight firmware version ranges across multiple product branches are affected, spanning versions 12.0.1 through 13.5.1. Hitachi Energy has released patched firmware versions for all affected branches.

Vendor
Hitachi Energy
Product
RTU500 series CMU Firmware
CVSS
MEDIUM 5.9
CISA KEV
Not listed in stored evidence
Original CVE published
2024-12-19
Original CVE updated
2024-12-19
Advisory published
2024-12-19
Advisory updated
2024-12-19

Who should care

Organizations operating Hitachi Energy RTU500 series remote terminal units in electric utility, energy, and critical infrastructure environments. Security teams responsible for OT/ICS network protection and asset owners managing IEC 60870-5-104 protocol deployments.

Technical summary

The vulnerability exists in the SCI IEC 60870-5-104 and HCI IEC 60870-5-104 components of Hitachi Energy RTU500 series CMU firmware. Insufficient input validation on specially crafted protocol messages allows a buffer overflow condition that forces device reboot. The attack requires network access to the target device but does not require authentication or user interaction. Successful exploitation results in loss of availability for the remote terminal unit. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H) reflects network accessibility, high attack complexity, and high availability impact with no confidentiality or integrity effects.

Defensive priority

medium

Recommended defensive actions

  • Update affected RTU500 series CMU firmware to the latest patched version for your product branch: 12.0.15, 12.2.12, 12.4.12, 12.6.10, 12.7.7, 13.2.7, 13.4.4, or 13.5.2
  • Apply network segmentation and firewall rules to restrict IEC 60870-5-104 traffic to authorized sources only
  • Follow Hitachi Energy's Remote Terminal Units Security Deployment Guideline for hardening recommendations
  • Ensure process control systems have no direct Internet connections and are physically protected from unauthorized access
  • Review and implement CISA ICS recommended practices for defense-in-depth strategies
  • Contact Hitachi Energy service organization for additional support if needed

Evidence notes

CVE description and affected product versions derived from CISA CSAF advisory ICSA-24-354-01. CVSS vector AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H indicates network attack vector with high attack complexity, no privileges required, and high availability impact.

Sources and references

Verified primary and authoritative sources

  • CVE-2023-6711 CVE Program record

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-6711

    CVE Program - Official CVE Program record with source-provided CVE metadata.

  • CVE-2023-6711 NVD vulnerability detail

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-6711

    NIST National Vulnerability Database - Official NIST NVD detail page and source-specific vulnerability assessment.

Supplemental references

  • Source item URL

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cisagov/CSAF/develop/csaf_files/OT/white/2024/icsa-24-354-01.json

    cisa_csaf

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/ics-advisories/icsa-24-354-01

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources/ics-recommended-practices

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Cybersecurity_Best_Practices_for_Industrial_Control_Systems.pdf

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/topics/industrial-control-systems

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/ics/alerts/ICS-ALERT-10-301-01

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://us-cert.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/recommended_practices/NCCIC_ICS-CERT_Defense_in_Depth_2016_S508C.pdf

    Reference

  • Source reference

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/uscert/ics/tips/ICS-TIP-12-146-01B

    Reference

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.