HOMEVULNERABILITIESCVE-2021-31607
HIGH

CVE-2021-31607

CWE-78Published: April 23, 2021· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

7.8
CVSS v3.1

Official Description

In SaltStack Salt 2016.9 through 3002.6, a command injection vulnerability exists in the snapper module that allows for local privilege escalation on a minion. The attack requires that a file is created with a pathname that is backed up by snapper, and that the master calls the snapper.diff function (which executes popen unsafely).

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2021-31607 requires local access, meaning attackers must already have a foothold on the target system.

Exploitation requires low privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.

A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 7.8.

CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown

Exploitability
Attack VectorLocal
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges Req.Low
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
Impact
ConfidentialityHigh
IntegrityHigh
AvailabilityHigh
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected Vendors & Products

Fedora1 product(s)
fedora
saltstack1 product(s)
salt
Source: NVD CPE · 4 total CPE entries

Exploit & PoC Resources

NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time
Exploit-DB
Offensive Security exploit database
GitHub PoC Search
Community PoC repositories
Rapid7 / Metasploit
Metasploit module search
PacketStorm
Security advisories & exploits
NVD Detail
Official NIST entry
MITRE CVE
CVE Program entry
External links open in a new tab. Always verify in a controlled environment before use.

Official Patches & Advisories

PATCHhttps://sec.stealthcopter.com/saltstack-snapper-minion-privledge-escaltion/
PATCHhttps://sec.stealthcopter.com/saltstack-snapper-minion-privledge-escaltion/
ADVISORYhttps://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/11/msg00009.html
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6BUWUF5VTENNP2ZYZBVFKPSUHLKLUBD5/
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ACVT7M4YLZRLWWQ6SGRK3C6TOF4FXOXT/
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/LDKMAJXYFHM4USVX3H5V2GCCBGASWUSM/
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/MBAHHSGZLEJRCG4DX6J4RBWJAAWH55RQ/
ADVISORYhttps://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202310-22
ADVISORYhttps://www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-5011
ADVISORYhttps://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/11/msg00009.html
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6BUWUF5VTENNP2ZYZBVFKPSUHLKLUBD5/
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ACVT7M4YLZRLWWQ6SGRK3C6TOF4FXOXT/
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/LDKMAJXYFHM4USVX3H5V2GCCBGASWUSM/
ADVISORYhttps://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/MBAHHSGZLEJRCG4DX6J4RBWJAAWH55RQ/
ADVISORYhttps://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202310-22
ADVISORYhttps://www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-5011

All References (16)

→
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/11/msg00009.htmlMailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6BUWUF5VTENNP2ZYZBVFKPSUHLKLUBD5/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ACVT7M4YLZRLWWQ6SGRK3C6TOF4FXOXT/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/LDKMAJXYFHM4USVX3H5V2GCCBGASWUSM/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/MBAHHSGZLEJRCG4DX6J4RBWJAAWH55RQ/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://sec.stealthcopter.com/saltstack-snapper-minion-privledge-escaltion/Exploit · Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202310-22Third Party Advisory
→
https://www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-5011Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/11/msg00009.htmlMailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6BUWUF5VTENNP2ZYZBVFKPSUHLKLUBD5/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ACVT7M4YLZRLWWQ6SGRK3C6TOF4FXOXT/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/LDKMAJXYFHM4USVX3H5V2GCCBGASWUSM/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/MBAHHSGZLEJRCG4DX6J4RBWJAAWH55RQ/Mailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://sec.stealthcopter.com/saltstack-snapper-minion-privledge-escaltion/Exploit · Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202310-22Third Party Advisory

Quick Facts

CVE IDCVE-2021-31607
CVSS Score7.8 / 10
SeverityHIGH
WeaknessCWE-78
CISA KEVNo
Affected2 vendor(s)
PublishedApr 23, 2021

Related CVEs (CWE-78)

CVE-2026-33478
KEV10.0
CVE-2026-46339
10.0
CVE-2019-4202
10.0
CVE-2018-25118
10.0
CVE-2026-34234
KEV10.0
CVE-2021-35402
KEV10.0

Recommended Actions

  • →Apply vendor patches immediately
  • →Monitor CVE-2021-31607 in threat intel feeds
  • →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts
Data sourced from NVD (NIST), CISA KEV, and EPSS (FIRST). Analysis generated by CTIWATCH.COM. CVE data is provided under the NVD usage policy.
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