Threats / Ivanti / CVE-2021-22900
CVE-2021-22900
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-08-04
Ivanti Pulse Connect Secure vulnerability
Ivanti Pulse Connect Secure contains an unrestricted file upload vulnerability allowing authenticated administrators to write arbitrary files via malicious archive uploads in the web interface.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
An authenticated administrator can exploit improper input validation on archive uploads to write files to the system, potentially enabling code execution or system compromise through CWE-94 code injection mechanisms.
CISA KEV Yes · 2021-11-035EPSS 0.14146 (verify live)6CVSS 7.2 (CISA)4CISA SSVC Exploitation: active · Automatable: no · Impact: total4
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreReported exploitation
2 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2021-11-03).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.14146 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
CVSS 7.2 (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) · Affected: Ivanti, Pulse Connect Secure. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.CVSS — CISA-assigned via the ADP container (CVE.org), version 3.1; the CNA left no metrics, so CISA's own score is used ahead of NVD.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-94 Code Injection — weakness family: Injection.CWE — CNA-assigned (CVE.org); the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
CISA SSVC (triage disposition)
Exploitation: active · Automatable: no · Technical Impact: totalCISA's own stakeholder-specific triage inputs, published in the CVE record (CISA Coordinator role). NOTE: this is CISA's three decision points; the final Act/Attend/Track decision also requires a Mission & Well-being input not published here, so no overall decision is asserted.
Currency of the record
CISA added this to its KEV catalog 160 days after the CVE record was published.KEV lag = CISA-KEV dateAdded − CVE.org datePublished; a floor on how long the known-exploited flaw sat in the public record before the federal catalog listed it. Severity/weakness here is CNA- or CISA-assigned (current at disclosure), independent of NVD's analysis backlog.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I craft a malicious archive file designed to bypass upload validation controls.
Business
Administrative access controls fail to prevent unauthorized file placement on critical infrastructure.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I upload the archive through the administrator web interface, exploiting the lack of proper file type or content restrictions.
Business
The system processes untrusted input without adequate sanitization, creating an execution pathway.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I write arbitrary files to sensitive directories on the Pulse Connect Secure server.
Business
System integrity is compromised as attacker-controlled files are placed in executable or configuration locations.
4
Data at risk — exfiltration narrative 4
Attacker
I trigger code execution by accessing the written files or leveraging them in subsequent operations.
Business
The VPN appliance is fully compromised, enabling lateral movement into protected networks and data exfiltration.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05