An issue was discovered in through SaltStack Salt before 3002.5.
An issue was discovered in through SaltStack Salt before 3002.5. salt-api does not honor eauth credentials for the wheel_async client. Thus, an attacker can remotely run any wheel modules on the master.
- Published
- Feb 27, 2021
- Updated
- Jun 16, 2026
- EPSS
- 73.1% · 99th percentile
- CWE
- CWE-287
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Report tools
Action score
61
This week
Don’t wait for the next maintenance window.
- CVSS
- 39 / 40 · 9.8 / 10
- CISA KEV
- 0 / 30 · Not listed
- EPSS
- 22 / 30 · 73.1%
CISA SSVC decision
- Exploitation
- none
- Automatable
- yes
- Technical impact
- total
Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.
Noroxi analysis
No Noroxi analysis for this record yet
We don't hand-write analysis for the hundreds of thousands of vulnerabilities in the database; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.
We use this product, ask for helpAffected systems
| Vendor | Product | CPE |
|---|---|---|
| saltstack | salt | cpe:2.3:a:saltstack:salt |
| fedoraproject | fedora | cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora |
| debian | debian linux | cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux |
Affected versions
NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.
- debian debian linux10.0
- debian debian linux11.0
- debian debian linux9.0
- fedoraproject fedora32
- fedoraproject fedora33
- fedoraproject fedora34
- saltstack salt2016.11.4 and later · before 2016.11.5
- saltstack salt2016.11.7 and later · before 2016.11.10
- saltstack salt2017.5.0 and later · before 2017.7.8
- saltstack salt2018.2.0 and later · up to 2018.3.5 inclusive
- saltstack saltbefore 2015.8.10
- saltstack salt2019.2.6 and later · before 2019.2.8
- saltstack salt3000 and later · before 3000.6
- saltstack salt3001 and later · before 3001.4
- saltstack salt3002 and later · before 3002.5
- saltstack salt2019.2.0 and later · before 2019.2.5
- saltstack salt2015.8.11 and later · before 2015.8.13
- saltstack salt2016.3.0 and later · before 2016.3.4
- saltstack salt2016.3.5 and later · before 2016.3.6
- saltstack salt2016.3.7 and later · before 2016.3.8
Package-level exposure
OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian:9 | salt | before 2016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u7 | 2016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u7 |
| openSUSE:Leap 15.2 | salt | before 3000-lp152.3.27.1 | 3000-lp152.3.27.1 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2015.8.11 · before 2015.8.13 | 2015.8.13 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2016.11.0 · before 2016.11.3 | 2016.11.3 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2016.11.4 · before 2016.11.5 | 2016.11.5 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2016.11.7 · before 2016.11.10 | 2016.11.10 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2016.3.0 · before 2016.3.4 | 2016.3.4 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2016.3.0 · before 2016.11.5 | 2016.11.5 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2016.3.5 · before 2016.3.6 | 2016.3.6 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2016.3.7 · before 2016.3.8 | 2016.3.8 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2017.5.0 · before 2017.7.8 | 2017.7.8 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2017.7.0 · before 2017.7.8 | 2017.7.8 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2018.2.0 · up to and including 2018.3.5 | — |
| PyPI | salt | from 2018.3.0rc1 · before 2019.2.0rc1 | 2019.2.0rc1 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2019.2.0 · before 2019.2.5 | 2019.2.5 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2019.2.0 · before 2019.2.8 | 2019.2.8 |
| PyPI | salt | from 2019.2.6 · before 2019.2.8 | 2019.2.8 |
| PyPI | salt | from 3000 · before 3000.7 | 3000.7 |
| PyPI | salt | from 3000 · before 3000.6 | 3000.6 |
| PyPI | salt | from 3001 · before 3001.5 | 3001.5 |
| PyPI | salt | from 3001 · before 3001.4 | 3001.4 |
| PyPI | salt | from 3002 · before 3002.5 | 3002.5 |
| PyPI | salt | from 3002 · before 3002.3 | 3002.3 |
| PyPI | salt | before 2015.8.10 | 2015.8.10 |
+11
Same product
saltstack: all recordsOther highest-scoring records for the same primary product.
- CVE-2020-16846An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt through 3002.KEV99Now
- CVE-2020-11651An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 2019.2.4 and 3000 before 3000.2.KEV98Now
- CVE-2020-11652An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 2019.2.4 and 3000 before 3000.2.KEV82Now
- CVE-2021-25282An issue was discovered in through SaltStack Salt before 3002.5.64This week
- CVE-2021-3197An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 3002.5.61This week
- CVE-2020-25592In SaltStack Salt through 3002, salt-netapi improperly validates eauth credentials and tokens.56Plan
Remediation
Which version to upgrade to
Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.
| Product / package | Fixed version | Source |
|---|---|---|
| debian:salt | 2016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u7 · Debian:9 | Package registry (OSV) |
| opensuse:salt | 3000-lp152.3.27.1 · openSUSE:Leap 15.2 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2015.8.10 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2015.8.13 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2016.11.10 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2016.11.3 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2016.11.5 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2016.3.4 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2016.3.6 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2016.3.8 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2017.7.8 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2019.2.0rc1 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2019.2.5 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 2019.2.8 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 3000.6 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 3000.7 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 3001.4 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 3001.5 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 3002.3 | Package registry (OSV) |
| PyPI:salt | 3002.5 | Package registry (OSV) |
| suse:py26-compat-salt | 2016.11.10-6.8.1 · SUSE:Manager Server Module 4.1 | Package registry (OSV) |
| suse:release-notes-susemanager | 4.0.12.1-3.68.1 · SUSE:Manager Server 4.0 | Package registry (OSV) |
| suse:release-notes-susemanager-proxy | 4.0.12.1-0.16.52.1 · SUSE:Manager Proxy 4.0 | Package registry (OSV) |
| suse:salt | 3000-46.129.1 · SUSE:Manager Client Tools 12 | Package registry (OSV) |
Exploit status
Weaponized
A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.
Evidence
- Metasploit module ×1
- Nuclei detection template ×1
- Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub ×1
Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.
| Source | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Metasploit module | exploit/linux/http/saltstack_salt_wheel_async_rceSaltStack Salt API Unauthenticated RCE through wheel_async clientexploit | 2021-02-25 |
| Nuclei detection template | Nuclei template CVE-2021-25281 | — |
| Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub | stars:27 | 2021-02-26 |
Research context
For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.
Timeline
From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.
- Metasploit-2 d
- First PoC-1 d
- Published
- TodayOct 2, 2026+2043 d
FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).
Patch and commit links
Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.
No commit or PR link among the references.
Credits
All researchersFinders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.
No credits in the CNA record.
Variant candidates
Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.
—
Chain candidates
An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.
- CVE-2021-3160755 days apartIn SaltStack Salt 2016.9 through 3002.6, a command injection vulnerability exists in the snapper module that allows for local privilege esca33Monitor
- CVE-2020-282430 days apartAn issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 3002.5.32Monitor
Bug bounty scope
No known public program.
Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).
National notice (Türkiye Cybersecurity Directorate / USOM)
Official security notices citing this record; remediation advice is on the agency's page.
- TR-21-0255 · Mar 22, 2021(SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Güncellemesi)
Technical details
Attack conditions
- Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
- No account or password is required.
- No user action is required.
- No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
If successful
- Confidentiality
- high · data can be read
- Integrity
- high · data or configuration can be modified
- Availability
- high · the service can be disrupted
- Attack vector
- Network
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality impact
- High
- Integrity impact
- High
- Availability impact
- High
Weakness class (CWE)
CWE-287 · Improper AuthenticationCVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
nvd-primary
Root cause
Authentication is added route by route instead of being enforced in one place. When a route added later bypasses the shared middleware, the session check never runs for it.
The bug in code
The whole CWE-287 classA representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.
Vulnerable
app.use("/admin", requireSession, adminRouter);
// Route added later skips the middlewareapp.post("/admin-api/config", updateConfig);Fixed
const admin = express.Router();admin.use(requireSession, requireRole("admin"));
admin.post("/config", updateConfig);app.use("/admin", admin);Attack context
MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.
Attack patterns (CAPEC)
- Authentication AbuseCAPEC-114Medium
- Authentication BypassCAPEC-115Medium
- Identity SpoofingCAPEC-151likelihood: Medium · Medium
- Fake the Source of DataCAPEC-194Medium
- Exploiting Trust in ClientCAPEC-22likelihood: High · High
- Utilizing REST's Trust in the System Resource to Obtain Sensitive DataCAPEC-57likelihood: Medium · Very High
- Session HijackingCAPEC-593likelihood: High · Very High
- Token ImpersonationCAPEC-633Medium
ATT&CK techniques
Change log
- Fix✗ → ✓
For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →
References
- github.com/saltstack/salt/releases
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/11/msg00009.html
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/7GRVZ5WAEI3XFN2BDTL6DDXFS5HYSDVB/
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/FUGLOJ6NXLCIFRD2JTXBYQEMAEF2B6XH/
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/YOGNT2XWPOYV7YT75DN7PS4GIYWFKOK5/
- saltproject.io/security_announcements/active-saltstack-cve-release-2021-feb-25/
- security.gentoo.org/glsa/202103-01
- security.gentoo.org/glsa/202310-22
- www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-5011
- www.saltstack.com/blog/active-saltstack-cve-announced-2021-jan-21/
Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.