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NVD / CVE Program· CNA apache

CVE-2021-36162: Unprotected yaml deserialization cause RCE

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 36/100)

  • 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: 2.2% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 82.9% of all records.
  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • Fixed version: org.apache.dubbo:dubbo (Maven) 3.0.2, 2.7.13.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to org.apache.dubbo:dubbo (Maven) 3.0.2, 2.7.13 or later.

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

Apache Dubbo supports various rules to support configuration override or traffic routing (called routing in Dubbo). These rules are loaded into the configuration center (eg: Zookeeper, Nacos, ...) and retrieved by the customers when making a request in order to find the right endpoint. When parsing these YAML rules, Dubbo customers will use SnakeYAML library to load the rules which by default will enable calling arbitrary constructors. An attacker with access to the configuration center he will be able to poison the rule so when retrieved by the consumers, it will get RCE on all of them. This was fixed in Dubbo 2.7.13, 3.0.2

HighCVSS 8.8 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available
Published
Sep 7, 2021
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
2.2% · 82th percentile
CWE
—

Report tools

JSON

Action score

36

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
35 / 40 · 8.8 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
1 / 30 · 2.2%

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  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

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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
apachedubbo

Affected versions

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

  • apache dubbo2.7.0 and later · up to 2.7.12 inclusive
  • apache dubbo3.0.0 and later · up to 3.0.1 inclusive

Versions reported by the vendor

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

  • Apache Software Foundation Apache Dubbo

    • Apache Dubbo 2.7.x and later · up to and including 2.7.12affected
    • Apache Dubbo 3.0.x and later · up to and including 3.0.1affected

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Mavenorg.apache.dubbo:dubbofrom 3.0.0 · before 3.0.23.0.2
Mavenorg.apache.dubbo:dubbobefore 2.7.132.7.13

Same product

apache: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2021-30181Apache Dubbo RCE on customers via Script route poisoning (Nashorn script injection)
    57Plan
  • CVE-2021-30180Apache Dubbo RCE on customers via Condition route poisoning (Unsafe YAML unmarshaling)
    57Plan
  • CVE-2019-17564Unsafe deserialization occurs within a Dubbo application which has HTTP remoting enabled.
    50Plan

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2021-25641Jun 1, 2021 · Dubbo Zookeeper does not check serialization id
    45Plan
  • ← EarlierCVE-2021-30179Jun 1, 2021 · Apache Dubbo Pre-auth RCE via Java deserialization in the Generic filter
    40Plan
  • Later →CVE-2021-36163Sep 7, 2021 · Unsafe deserialization in providers using the Hessian protocol
    40Plan

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

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

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Maven:org.apache.dubbo:dubbo2.7.13Package registry (OSV)
Maven:org.apache.dubbo:dubbo3.0.2Package registry (OSV)

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.

No history yet (it accumulates with the daily EPSS job).

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 researchers

Finders, 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.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • A low-privileged account is enough.
  • 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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

—

CVSS vector

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

nvd-primary

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.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

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

All records