CVE-2021-21972 is a critical remote code execution vulnerability in the vSphere Client (HTML5) plugin affecting VMware vCenter Server and Cloud Foundation. An unauthenticated attacker with network access to port 443 can exploit this to execute commands with unrestricted privileges on the underlying operating system. With a CVSS score of 9.8 (Critical) and an EPSS score indicating high exploitability, this vulnerability poses a severe risk due to its network-based attack vector and complete compromise potential. It is actively exploited in the wild, including in known ransomware campaigns, with multiple public exploit modules and extensive community discussion and media coverage confirming its widespread threat.
| Vendor | Product | Version(s) | CPE |
|---|---|---|---|
>= 3.0, < 3.10.1.2CPE matchmatch criteria | cpe:2.3:a:vmware:cloud_foundation:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | ||
>= 4.0, < 4.2CPE matchmatch criteria | cpe:2.3:a:vmware:cloud_foundation:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | ||
6.5CPE matchmatch criteria | cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.5:-:*:*:*:*:*:* | ||
6.5CPE matchmatch criteria | cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.5:a:*:*:*:*:*:* | ||
6.5CPE matchmatch criteria | cpe:2.3:a:vmware:vcenter_server:6.5:b:*:*:*:*:*:* |
CVSS version used by this source: 3.1
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
The average CVE in this peer group has 0.0 Twitter, 0.1 Reddit, 0.3 Bluesky, 0.3 Mastodon, and 2.4 GitHub mentions.
The average CVE in this peer group has 0.3 InfoSec Media, 0.0 Vendor Blog, and 0.0 Security Researcher mentions.
VMware ESXi and vSphere Client Vulnerabilities (VMSA-2021-0002)
Jan 1, 2021Per VMware security advisory VMSA-2021-0002, VMware received reports of multiple vulnerabilities in VMware ESXi and vSphere Client (HTML5).
VMware ESXi and vSphere Client Multiple Vulnerabilities