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NVD / CVE Program· CNA vmware

CVE-2021-22023: The vRealize Operations Manager API (8.x prior to 8.5) has insecure object reference vulnerability.

HighCVSS 7.2 · v3.1—No exploit No fix recorded

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 28/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.99% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 63.1% of all records.
  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it. Administrator privileges are required. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • According to the record, no fixed version is available yet.

Low priority for now. Update when a fix is released; follow the vendor's advisory.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

The vRealize Operations Manager API (8.x prior to 8.5) has insecure object reference vulnerability. A malicious actor with administrative access to vRealize Operations Manager API may be able to modify other users information leading to an account takeover.

Published
Aug 30, 2021
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
0.9% · 63th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

28

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
28 / 40 · 7.2 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.9%

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • No fixed version yet

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2021-22023

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
vmwarecloud foundation
vmwarevrealize operations manager
vmwarevrealize suite lifecycle manager

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (vmware). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • n/a VMware vRealize Operations

    • VMware vRealize Operations (8.x prior to 8.5)affected
Affected versions · NVD (5)

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • vmware cloud foundation3.0 and later · up to 3.10.2.1 inclusive
  • vmware cloud foundation4.0 and later · up to 4.2.1 inclusive
  • vmware vrealize operations manager8.0.0 and later · before 8.5.0
  • vmware vrealize operations manager7.5.0
  • vmware vrealize suite lifecycle manager8.0 and later · up to 8.2 inclusive

Same product

vmware: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2021-22005The vCenter Server contains an arbitrary file upload vulnerability in the Analytics service.KEV
    99Now
  • CVE-2021-21972The vSphere Client (HTML5) contains a remote code execution vulnerability in a vCenter Server plugin.KEV
    99Now
  • CVE-2020-3992OpenSLP as used in VMware ESXi (7.0 before ESXi_7.0.1-0.0.16850804, 6.7 before ESXi670-202010401-SG, 6.5 before ESXi650-202010401-SG) has a…KEV
    94Now

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2021-21995Jul 13, 2021 · OpenSLP as used in ESXi has a denial-of-service vulnerability due a heap out-of-bounds read issue.
    30Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2021-22022Aug 30, 2021 · The vRealize Operations Manager API (8.x prior to 8.5) contains an arbitrary file read vulnerability.
    19Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2021-22024Aug 30, 2021 · The vRealize Operations Manager API (8.x prior to 8.5) contains an arbitrary log-file read vulnerability.
    30Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

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.

No dated events beyond publication.

Not on record for this CVE: EPSS history · patch commit or PR link · researcher credit · variant or chain candidate · public bounty program.

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • Administrator privileges are 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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-639 · Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-primary

Root cause

The endpoint fetches the record by the ID sent in the request, but never checks whether the record belongs to the requesting user.

The bug in code

The whole CWE-639 class

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

Vulnerable

ts
const invoice = await Invoice.findById(req.params.id);res.json(invoice);

Fixed

ts
const invoice = await Invoice.findOne({  id: req.params.id,  ownerId: req.user.id,});if (!invoice) return res.sendStatus(404);res.json(invoice);

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records