Path Traversal in VMware Cloud Foundation
CVE-2021-21972
The vSphere Client (HTML5) contains a remote code execution vulnerability in a vCenter Server plugin. A malicious actor with network access to port 443 may exploit this issue to execute commands with unrestricted privileges on the underlying operating system that hosts vCenter Server. This affects VMware vCenter Server (7.x before 7.0 U1c, 6.7 before 6.7 U3l and 6.5 before 6.5 U3n) and VMware Cloud Foundation (4.x before 4.2 and 3.x before 3.10.1.2).
Vulnerability class: Path Traversal (Directory Traversal)
EPSS: 0.999 (100.0th percentile) — read the EPSS interpretation.
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 9.8 (Critical). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
Affected products
- Vmware Cloud_foundation
- Vmware Vcenter_server — versions 6.5, 6.7, 7.0
- N/a Vmware Cloud Foundation — versions 4.x before 4.2, 3.x before 3.10.1.2
- N/a Vmware Vcenter Server — versions 7.x before 7.0 U1c, 6.7 before 6.7 U3l, 6.5 before 6.5 U3n
Weakness classification (CWE)
CISA KEV (Known Exploited Vulnerabilities)
This CVE is on the CISA KEV catalog, added on . CISA KEV inclusion means CISA has confirmed in-the-wild exploitation; US federal agencies are required to remediate within a published due date.
BOD 22-01 due date: .
Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Known ransomware campaign use: yes.
Public proof-of-concept exploits
References
- security@vmware.com (x_refsource_CONFIRM, Vendor Advisory)
- security@vmware.com (Exploit, VDB Entry, Third Party Advisory, x_refsource_MISC)
- security@vmware.com (Exploit, VDB Entry, Third Party Advisory, x_refsource_MISC)
- security@vmware.com (Exploit, VDB Entry, Third Party Advisory, x_refsource_MISC)
- 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 (US Government Resource)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2021-21972?
- CVE-2021-21972 is a critical-severity vulnerability in VMware Cloud Foundation, classified under Path Traversal. CVSS score: 9.8/10. Published 2021-02-24.
- How severe is CVE-2021-21972?
- Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.8 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2021-21972 known to be exploited?
- Yes. CVE-2021-21972 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2021-11-03), indicating it is being actively exploited. 204 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed.