CVE-2021-23418Network attack vector

Host crash via unprotected XML-RPC parsing

Published Jul 29, 2021 · Updated Sep 16, 2024

XML external entity injection in Glances before 3.2.1 allows remote attackers to crash the host via crafted XML-RPC traffic. The compatibility layer imports Fault from xmlrpclib and parses untrusted XML without defusedxml protections against external entities. The XML-RPC service must be reachable; entity expansion can exhaust host resources, while product-specific file-read or write impact is not demonstrated.

CVSS severity9.8
Critical
EPSS probability1.64%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

XML external entity injection in Glances before 3.2.1 allows remote attackers to crash the host via crafted XML-RPC traffic. The compatibility layer imports Fault from xmlrpclib and parses untrusted XML without defusedxml protections against external entities. The XML-RPC service must be reachable; entity expansion can exhaust host resources, while product-specific file-read or write impact is not demonstrated.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-23418
Published
Jul 29, 2021
Updated
Sep 16, 2024
Vendor
Glances Project
Product
Glances
Classifications
CWE-611, CAPEC-221, T1499
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jul 29, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 16, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=unspecified <3.2.1

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Glances Project · Glancesversion=unspecified <3.2.1

Published CVSS scores

5.3GitHubCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:L/VI:L/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
9.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
6.3SnykCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L
7.5NIST NVDAV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-611Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference
CAPEC-221Data Serialization External Entities Blowup
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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