Is CVE-2021-31840 actively exploited?

No active exploitation of CVE-2021-31840 has been confirmed so far. Continue monitoring, as exploit status can change.

Can CVE-2021-31840 be exploited remotely?

No. CVE-2021-31840 requires local access to exploit.

What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-31840?

CVE-2021-31840 has a CVSS score of 7.3 (HIGH).

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HIGH

CVE-2021-31840

CWE-427Published: June 10, 2021· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

7.3

CVSS v3.1

Official Description

A vulnerability in the preloading mechanism of specific dynamic link libraries in McAfee Agent for Windows prior to 5.7.3 could allow an authenticated, local attacker to perform a DLL preloading attack with unsigned DLLs. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker would need to have valid credentials on the Windows system. This would result in the user gaining elevated permissions and being able to execute arbitrary code.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2021-31840 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 7.3.