Vulnerability in Veritas Backup Exec
CVE-2021-27878
An issue was discovered in Veritas Backup Exec before 21.2. The communication between a client and an Agent requires successful authentication, which is typically completed over a secure TLS communication. However, due to a vulnerability in the SHA Authentication scheme, an attacker is able to gain unauthorized access and complete the authentication process. Subsequently, the client can execute data management protocol commands on the authenticated connection. The attacker could use one of these commands to execute an arbitrary command on the system using system privileges.
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 8.8 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.240 (97.8th percentile), scored .
Moderate probability of exploitation in the next 30 days — watch for active exploitation reports. 98th percentile — 97.8% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.240 · newest: 0.240 · change: 0.000
Affected products
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
- www.veritas.com/content/support/en_US/security/VTS21-001 (Vendor Advisory)
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/168506/Veritas-Backup-Exec-Agent-Remote-Code-Exec… (Exploit, VDB Entry, Third Party Advisory)
- 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 (US Government Resource)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2021-27878?
- CVE-2021-27878 is a high-severity vulnerability in Veritas Backup Exec. CVSS score: 8.8/10. Published 2021-03-01.
- How severe is CVE-2021-27878?
- High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.8 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2021-27878 known to be exploited?
- Yes. CVE-2021-27878 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2023-04-07), indicating it is being actively exploited. 5 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed.