CVE-2024-6918: Accutech Manager Buffer Overflow Flaw

CVE-2024-6918 Overview

CVE-2024-6918 is a classic buffer overflow vulnerability [CWE-120] affecting Schneider Electric Accutech Manager. The flaw stems from copying input data into a buffer without validating the size of the input. An unauthenticated remote attacker can send a specially crafted request to TCP port 2536 and trigger a crash of the Accutech Manager service. Exploitation results in denial of service against the affected industrial monitoring application. The vulnerability was disclosed by Schneider Electric in advisory SEVD-2024-226-01 and published to the National Vulnerability Database on August 20, 2024.

Critical Impact
Remote unauthenticated attackers can crash the Accutech Manager service by sending malformed packets to TCP port 2536, disrupting industrial wireless telemetry monitoring.

Affected Products

Schneider Electric Accutech Manager
Wireless telemetry monitoring deployments using Accutech Manager listening on TCP port 2536
Refer to the Schneider Electric Security Notice SEVD-2024-226-01 for version-specific details

Discovery Timeline

2024-08-20 - CVE-2024-6918 published to NVD
2026-04-15 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-6918

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in the network request handler of Schneider Electric Accutech Manager, which listens on TCP port 2536. When the service receives a specially crafted request, it copies attacker-supplied input into a fixed-size buffer without validating the input length. The oversized copy overwrites adjacent memory, corrupting program state and causing the process to crash.

Because Accutech Manager is the central server component for wireless telemetry field instruments, a crash disrupts data collection from connected sensors and breaks operator visibility. Plants relying on the manager for trend logging, alarming, or supervisory data must restart the service to restore monitoring.

The Common Weakness Enumeration classification is [CWE-120], Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input. The vulnerability impacts availability only; confidentiality and integrity are not affected according to the published CVSS vector. No authentication or user interaction is required to reach the vulnerable code path.

Root Cause

The root cause is missing bounds checking before a memory copy operation in the TCP listener that processes Accutech protocol messages on port 2536. The application trusts a length field or terminator supplied by the client instead of constraining the copy to the destination buffer size.

Attack Vector

An attacker with network reachability to TCP port 2536 sends a single malformed request containing an oversized payload. No credentials are needed. The crafted packet triggers the unchecked buffer copy and terminates the Accutech Manager process, producing a denial of service condition until the service is restarted.

No public proof-of-concept exploit code has been released for CVE-2024-6918, and Schneider Electric has not reported active exploitation. Refer to the vendor advisory for protocol-level details.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-6918

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected termination or repeated restarts of the Accutech Manager process on the host system
Application or Windows event log entries showing access violations or crash dumps for the Accutech Manager service
Loss of telemetry data ingestion from connected wireless field instruments coinciding with inbound traffic to TCP port 2536

Detection Strategies

Inspect inbound TCP/2536 traffic for abnormally large payloads or malformed protocol headers using network IDS or deep packet inspection
Alert on Accutech Manager service stop or crash events through endpoint and Windows service monitoring
Correlate gaps in telemetry data with network connection logs to identify potential exploitation attempts

Monitoring Recommendations

Continuously monitor the availability and uptime of the Accutech Manager service and alert on unplanned restarts
Capture and review connection logs for TCP port 2536, flagging connections from non-engineering subnets or untrusted hosts
Forward host application logs and crash dumps to a centralized log management or SIEM platform for retention and analysis

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-6918

Immediate Actions Required

Apply the remediation provided by Schneider Electric in advisory SEVD-2024-226-01
Restrict network access to TCP port 2536 so that only authorized engineering workstations and OT servers can communicate with Accutech Manager
Place Accutech Manager hosts inside a segmented OT network zone protected by a firewall

Patch Information

Refer to Schneider Electric Security Notice SEVD-2024-226-01 for the fixed version and remediation guidance for Accutech Manager. Install the updated software on all hosts running the affected component and validate that the service starts cleanly after the upgrade.

Workarounds

Block TCP port 2536 at perimeter and internal firewalls except from explicitly allowlisted client addresses
Disable or stop the Accutech Manager service on systems where it is not actively required
Monitor for unexpected service crashes and implement automatic service restart policies to reduce downtime if a crash occurs
Follow Schneider Electric and CISA ICS cybersecurity best practices for isolating control system networks from business networks