CVE-2021-42373 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting Busybox, specifically its man applet. This vulnerability allows a NULL pointer dereference, leading to a denial of service when a section name is supplied without a corresponding page argument. With a CVSS score of 5.5, the risk to organizations includes potential service disruptions and unavailability.
This vulnerability's exploitation status indicates that no known exploits currently exist, but organizations should remain vigilant. Given its moderate severity and the potential for service disruption, organizations should address this vulnerability in their patch cycles.
The urgency for defenders is high due to the nature of the vulnerability, which can be exploited locally. Immediate action is recommended to prevent denial of service incidents.
As such, organizations utilizing Busybox should review their systems and apply necessary updates to mitigate the risk associated with this vulnerability.
Vulnerability Details
The official CVE description states that this vulnerability allows a NULL pointer dereference in Busybox's man applet, leading to denial of service when a section name is supplied but no page argument is given. This can severely impact system availability.
The CVSS score for this vulnerability is 5.5, classified as medium severity. This indicates a moderate level of risk, with high availability impact but no confidentiality or integrity impact.
The affected products include Busybox versions 1.33.0 and 1.33.1, alongside various systems like Fedora 33 and 34, and NetApp's cloud backup solutions.
The vulnerability was published on November 15, 2021, and is classified under CWE-476, which pertains to NULL Pointer Dereference.
Technical Analysis
The root cause of this vulnerability is a NULL pointer dereference occurring within the man applet of Busybox. This flaw allows an attacker with local access to trigger a denial of service by supplying a section name without a page argument.
The attack vector is local, meaning the attacker must have access to the system where Busybox is running. The complexity of this attack is low, and it requires low privileges to exploit, with no user interaction needed.
The impact of this vulnerability includes high availability impact, which may cause the service to become unavailable until mitigated. However, there are no impacts on confidentiality or integrity.
Risk & Impact Analysis
The risk to organizations includes potential service disruption due to the denial of service caused by this vulnerability. Organizations utilizing Busybox, especially in critical systems, should take this vulnerability seriously.
The blast radius is significant as Busybox is often used in various embedded systems and Unix-like operating systems. Organizations must ensure that all instances of Busybox are updated to mitigate this risk.
Given the CVSS score of 5.5 and the availability impact, organizations should address this vulnerability in their priority patch cycle to prevent unnecessary downtime.
Exploitation Status
Signal | Status |
|---|---|
Known Exploit | No |
Public PoC | No |
Actively Exploited | No |
Ransomware Use | No |
Affected Versions
The affected versions include Busybox 1.33.0 and 1.33.1, along with Fedora 33 and 34. NetApp products including cloud_backup, hci_management_node, and various firmware versions are also impacted.
Mitigation & Remediation
Organizations should prioritize patching their Busybox installations to versions that are not affected by this vulnerability. If immediate patching is not possible, consider implementing network restrictions to limit access to affected systems.
Configuration hardening and regular monitoring of systems for unusual activity can help mitigate risks associated with this vulnerability. For comprehensive security assessments, organizations can utilize application security assessments to identify similar vulnerabilities.
Detection Guidance
To detect potential exploitation of this vulnerability, organizations should monitor logs for any unusual access patterns or denial of service incidents. Watch for system crashes or unresponsive behavior related to the Busybox man applet.
AppSecure Threat Intelligence Insight
The long-term significance of CVE-2021-42373 highlights the need for organizations to remain vigilant about vulnerabilities in widely-used components like Busybox. This incident underscores the importance of regular updates and monitoring.
Security teams should take this as a reminder to implement robust vulnerability management programs that can adapt to emerging threats. For further guidance on establishing effective security practices, organizations can review the vulnerability management program design to ensure a proactive approach to security.
Additionally, organizations should consider utilizing penetration testing to further identify and remediate vulnerabilities within their environments.
Overall, CVE-2021-42373 serves as a crucial reminder for organizations to maintain vigilance and prioritize security in their software environments.
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
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