HOMEVULNERABILITIESCVE-2022-21685
MEDIUM

CVE-2022-21685

CWE-191Published: January 14, 2022· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

6.5
CVSS v3.1

Official Description

Frontier is Substrate's Ethereum compatibility layer. Prior to commit number `8a93fdc6c9f4eb1d2f2a11b7ff1d12d70bf5a664`, a bug in Frontier's MODEXP precompile implementation can cause an integer underflow in certain conditions. This will cause a node crash for debug builds. For release builds (and production WebAssembly binaries), the impact is limited as it can only cause a normal EVM out-of-gas. Users who do not use MODEXP precompile in their runtime are not impacted. A patch is available in pull request #549.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2022-21685 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.

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

A successful exploit results in availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 6.5.

CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown

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

Affected Vendors & Products

parity1 product(s)
frontier
Source: NVD CPE · 1 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://github.com/paritytech/frontier/commit/8a93fdc6c9f4eb1d2f2a11b7ff1d12d70bf5a664
PATCHhttps://github.com/paritytech/frontier/pull/549
PATCHhttps://github.com/paritytech/frontier/security/advisories/GHSA-cjg2-2fjg-fph4
PATCHhttps://github.com/paritytech/frontier/commit/8a93fdc6c9f4eb1d2f2a11b7ff1d12d70bf5a664
PATCHhttps://github.com/paritytech/frontier/pull/549
PATCHhttps://github.com/paritytech/frontier/security/advisories/GHSA-cjg2-2fjg-fph4

All References (6)

→
https://github.com/paritytech/frontier/commit/8a93fdc6c9f4eb1d2f2a11b7ff1d12d70bf5a664Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://github.com/paritytech/frontier/pull/549Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://github.com/paritytech/frontier/security/advisories/GHSA-cjg2-2fjg-fph4Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://github.com/paritytech/frontier/commit/8a93fdc6c9f4eb1d2f2a11b7ff1d12d70bf5a664Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://github.com/paritytech/frontier/pull/549Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://github.com/paritytech/frontier/security/advisories/GHSA-cjg2-2fjg-fph4Patch · Third Party Advisory

Quick Facts

CVE IDCVE-2022-21685
CVSS Score6.5 / 10
SeverityMEDIUM
WeaknessCWE-191
CISA KEVNo
Affected1 vendor(s)
PublishedJan 14, 2022

Related CVEs (CWE-191)

CVE-2007-0063
10.0
CVE-2023-28250
9.8
CVE-2019-20590
9.8
CVE-2019-14083
9.8
CVE-2020-3691
9.8
CVE-2020-15900
9.8

Recommended Actions

  • →Apply vendor patches immediately
  • →Monitor CVE-2022-21685 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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